CELINA – A Celina couple is back home after they were attacked by a shark off the Texas coast on July 4. The wife, Tabitha Sullivent, lost a majority of her left calf in the attack and nearly lost her life.
“The bull shark that attacked me was going up and down the beach and was probably about as big as my couch,” Sullivent told CBS News Texas.
The shark bit off most of her left calf. Her husband, Cary, rushed into the water and was also bitten slightly by the shark. Sullivent lost almost 75% of her blood, but a group of strangers on the beach had tourniquets on hand to keep the bleeding at bay until emergency crews arrived.
“I saw how bad it was and how white she was, and I thought I just lost my wife,” Cary said. “I wouldn’t be here if all the people on the beach weren’t there and got in the water to save me,” Sullivent said.
Sullivent was rushed to the ER and had to undergo multiple surgeries. Doctors used skin grafts from her thigh and fish skin to heal her leg.