Leah Stewart, a 34-year-old primary school teacher and mother of one, has described the moment she came face-to-face with a great white shark during an attack at Coogee Beach in New South Wales, Australia. She believes her decision to throw a left hook may have saved her life.
The attack occurred on June 13 as she swam between the flags. Stewart underwent multiple surgeries and spent two weeks in a coma. One procedure resulted in the amputation of one of her arms, while serious tendon and nerve damage initially left her unable to use her remaining arm.
Fight for survival
In an interview with Nine News, Stewart recalled: "It got to the point where it was about 30cm from my face and it started opening its mouth. I'm like, 'It's going to get my face, it's going to bite my face'... I'm like, 'I've got to try and punch it. I've got to try and push it away or else it's going to bite my head off'."
She continued: "And in that moment I thought, 'Well, which limb am I willing to lose?' I'm right-handed. So I decided, let's do a left hook."
Stewart previously recounted how her survival instincts kicked in during the attack as she fought the shark for the sake of her daughter, August. "Its face was horrific - I will never forget (it)," she said. "It was a monster. It was holding onto my leg. All I was thinking of was August and I thought, 'she's not going to have a mum'. I just thought, 'I've got to fight it and do everything I can to be here'."
Emergency call and recovery
Stewart's interview also featured the emergency 000 call made as she lay injured. "Hi, we've got a shark attack at Coogee Beach... there's a lot of blood," a beachgoer can be heard telling the operator.
As her recovery continues, her family set up a GoFundMe page, which as of August 28 had received donations surpassing $558,000 AUD (£295,000).
Gratitude and next steps
A message from Stewart on the account reads: "I want to say the biggest thank you for looking after me, for caring for my family, and for being generous enough to help my family through this. I am constantly overwhelmed at how supportive people I know, and even strangers, have been, and how much they've cared about my family to make such an impact on our lives."
She added: "After what has been an incredibly difficult few months, I'm so happy that I've progressed enough to build some independence, and I can finally see some light after all of this. At this point, I think it's appropriate for us to turn off donations on the GoFundMe, because what you've offered has given us enough to recover, to stay in our home, and to give us options for further medical treatment down the road."
Stewart closed by expressing her gratefulness at her "second chance of life" - one which she has vowed not to "waste". "As I get better, I know I'll make something of this second chance and aim to give back even more in generosity, care, and love," she declared. "I will forever be grateful for everything, and everyone, I've been given. You've inspired me to get better, not bitter."
She also expressed her gratitude to Charlie Verco, a championship paddleboarder who pulled her from the water before emergency responders and medical teams arrived to treat her on the beach.
The incident was followed by an expansion of shark-spotting drones along the New South Wales coastline. Since July 1, drones have been deployed at 70 beaches, including every Sydney beach between Palm Beach and Cronulla.
