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Oregon Man Beats Away Shark Attack with Surfboard
(Florence, Oregon) – A Eugene man was bitten by a shark in waters just off Florence - on the central Oregon coast - Tuesday night, suffering several tears in his foot.
Tom Larson was surfing near the south jetty when he felt something grab his foot, saying it felt like a vise or a bear trap bearing down on him. It began shaking him, and Larson said he soon realized it was a shark when he saw the fin.
Larson said adrenaline took over and he repeatedly hit the shark with his surfboard until the fish let go. He immediately started screaming “Shark! Shark!” in an attempt to alarm his friends and get them out of the water.
He was able to paddle his way back to shore. He was treated at Peace Harbor Hospital in Florence and then released.
Now on crutches, Larson says he is not in much pain, feeling more pressure in his white, bandaged foot. He has eight holes in his foot, resulting in 35 stitches. He is expected to make a full recovery.
Sharks are sometimes seen a little more often from September through March. A man surfing in the cove at Seaside suffered a similar attack last year about this time, also smacking the shark on the nose until it let go.
Shark attacks in these cold waters are quite rare, however. Still, the episode has reportedly spooked a few surfers in the Florence area from returning to the waters for a while.
Larson plans to continue surfing.
