It's a nightmarish scenario which seems straight out of Jaws and which has never happened before at a Texas beach: four people were attacked by a shark within a mere two hour period in waters off South Padre Island.
South Padre is a hugely popular vacation destination in south Texas, and it happened as beaches were packed for the Independence Day holiday. A horrific video showed people screaming and bawling as one woman is pulled from the ocean with a large gash in her leg, and apparently in a state of shock, and with blood filling the water...
JUST IN: Four shark attacks reported at South Padre Island in Texas during Fourth of July celebrations.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 5, 2024
Game Warden Capt. Chris Dowdy says all the attacks happened within two hours of each other.
One woman had a chunk bitten out her her leg as Good Samaritans were seen dragging… pic.twitter.com/Ng4aMKhjmi
"Details at this time indicate that two people were bitten and two people encountered the shark but were not seriously injured," the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said in a statement. Two victims were taken to Valley Regional Medical Center in Brownsville, with one being in more serious condition.
A third victim was injured, but not seriously, while trying to save another victim. A fourth person reportedly fought off a potential attack by kicking and punching the shark. "One [victim] was grazed and another injured fending off the shark," according to local news station KRGV.
One eyewitness said, "We never saw the shark ‘til he was right there with them" and described that "It wasn’t choppy water, and the seas were calm. He showed up out of nowhere."
"How is this actually happening right now? It was very surreal," another said. One person was actually pulled under by the shark but survived the ordeal:
Rayner Cardenas told KRGV his son-in-law was pulled underwater by the shark.
"Started swimming towards him, and he jumped out of the water and started saying, ‘Shark! Shark!’ And that’s when adrenaline kicked in, and I went right after him."
The bite to the man's leg was described as "severe". Texas Game Warden Captain Chris Dowdy said that authorities at this point believe all of the attacks were the result of the same shark, which lingered in the area of the last attack for some 20 to 30 minutes, and was caught on film. The woman in the above footage also appears to have suffered extensive injuries to her leg.
One account was particularly harrowing:
Nereyda Bazaldua told CNN her daughter was one of those bitten Thursday. Bazaldua said her two teenage daughters were in shallow, knee-deep water near the shore playing on boogie boards when they began screaming, “Shark!”
When her 18-year-old daughter Victoria came out of the water, Bazaldua said she “could see some blood coming down her leg,” Bazaldua said. Thankfully, she said, Victoria’s injuries were minor.
“The shark pushed into her, five to six of his teeth scratched her leg,” Bazaldua said. “The wounds aren’t deep.” She said the shark lingered in the water for 20 to 30 minutes before moving along.
Swimmers had been evacuated from the ocean, with DPS buzzing the waters with helicopters and providing a lookout, until the shark was reportedly observed swimming out to deeper waters.
Footage of the shark believed to have been behind the July 4th attacks:
"Local game wardens and members of the Texas Game Warden Marine Tactical Operations Group assisted in patrolling the beach by boat and land patrol while DPS patrolled the area by helicopter and SPI PD and Cameron County rangers assisted with crowd control on the beach," a statement said.
"Shark encounters of this nature are not a common occurrence in Texas," Texas officials said in a statement. "When bites from sharks do occur, they are usually a case of mistaken identity by sharks looking for food."
This incident is unprecedented and ultra-rare, given that in all of recorded history fewer than 50 total documented shark attacks have occurred in Texas since 1911.
