North Texas woman recounts shark attack – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

On South Padre Island, a day at the beach ended in disaster.

A video showed Tabatha Sullivent being pulled from the water with part of her leg missing while the shark that attacked her circled nearby.

“I can’t imagine that I actually experienced a shark attack. It’s kind of crazy,” Sullivent told NBC News.

Sullivent, a Celina resident, was one of four people who encountered the same 6-foot-long shark on July 4, according to authorities.

“I just thought it was a big fish, so I tried to kick it away. And that’s when it bit me. And if I hadn’t pulled my legs up, it probably would have hit my upper body or something else,” she said.

On a GoFundMe page set up for the family, Sullivent posted an update from her hospital bed:

“I lost my left calf. My toes can move and my foot has circulation. When I’m patched back together, I probably won’t have full mobility and won’t have the same leg as before. But I’m alive.”

Her husband Cary, who helped fight the shark, was also bitten but was released.

“The shark’s water was waist deep at most,” said Kyle Jud.

Jud was also visiting Padre from North Texas. He was one of several beachgoers who crowded around Sullivent, trying to help.

“The whole time the shark was just circling right in front of us. I mean, we could clearly see the big shark with its tail and dorsal fin hanging out of the water and just circling there as she was being taken away,” he said.

Jud praised the quick actions of the first responders.

Sullivent thanks her husband for saving her life.

“He fought a shark for me. That’s pretty impressive,” she said.

She is now waiting to see how long her road to recovery will take.

“I am grateful for all the support and I am alive,” Sullivant said.

Officials said Thursday’s shark attacks were the first in the area in five years.