A Disney Vacation Club family was enjoying the water adjacent to the Beach House at Disney's Hilton Head Island Resort when one of their sons was bitten by a shark.
IslandPacket.com reports that a 10-year old boy was bitten by a shark while wading in waist-deep water on the Hilton Head beach.
The Turrell family recently relocated from Orlando to the Hilton Head area. Over the weekend, they spent time enjoying the beach adjacent to Disney's Beach House on the Atlantic coast. During the visit, 10-year old Jei was apparently bitten in the forearm by a shark estimated to be 4-5 feet long.
Experts who examined the wound confirmed that he was bitten by a shark, likely a blacktip or spinner shark.
The shark's upper and lower teeth punctured the arm all the way to the bone. While the boy lost a great deal of blood, fortunately the animal did not take any portion of the arm. Jei was airlifted to Memorial University Medical Center in Savannah where surgery was performed on Sunday.
This is the first reported shark bite of 2018 in Hilton Head. According to information from the Hilton Head Island Shore Beach Service, there were ten confirmed shark attacks in South Carolina in 2017, eight of which were in Hilton Head.
The story is unclear as to whether the family were registered guests at Disney's Hilton Head Island Resort at the time of the incident, or if they were merely visiting the public beach in the vicinity of Disney's Beach House.
For additional details including a brief video interview with the Jei, visit IslandPacket.com.
