Central Valley (KSBY)—The shark that bit into a Central Valley man’s kayak Friday morning off the coast of Cambria is estimated to be a 10-foot great white.
The two say they went out fishing in separate kayaks between 8 and 8:30 a.m. and were about one to two miles north of Leffingwell Landing at the time.
The man in the kayak that was bitten was knocked into the water and shaken up but not injured.
The kayakers tell KSBY the shark swam off after the incident.
Fish and Wildlife reportedly collected teeth fragments from the kayak and will send them to a marine biologist to be analyzed.
CAL FIRE says another boater in the area heard the kayakers’ distress call and pulled them onto the boat.
David Zamora was fishing on his kayak this morning 1-2 miles offshore from Leffingwell Landing in #Cambria when a #shark bit into the side of his kayak. He was flipped out but managed to get back on uninjured. Hear his crazy story tonight on @KSBY pic.twitter.com/UDT3aVxais
— Christina Favuzzi (@CFavuzzi) October 25, 2019
Girl Lost Arm in Shark Attack
In another shark attack story, Hawaiian surfer Bethany Hamilton lost her arm in a shark attack while surfing in Kauai in 2003, when she was just 13 years old.
After losing nearly two-thirds of her blood, her life and future in surfing were anything but guaranteed. Surfing with one arm is a tall order, and doing so professionally nearly impossible, but when you combine unthinkable passion, unrelenting resilience, and the desire to fulfill lifelong goals, the impossible seems a little more feasible.
Her positive approach has also given her a unique perspective on life after the attack.
“Looking in hindsight, I see all the beauty and good that’s come from the loss of my arm that I wouldn’t change life to be how I think it should be, but rather just embracing life as it is.”
Miraculously, just 26 days after the attack, she was back on her board. Two years after that, she was a national champion.
Hamilton’s faith proved crucial in her return to the sport.
“When tough times come my way,” Hamilton told CNN World Sport’s Patrick Snell from Kauai, “I definitely rely on my faith in God and just be like ‘hey God I don’t know why I lost my arm but I’m going to trust you and know that good can come from this situation.'”
If Hamilton’s faith helped her surf again, her natural ability and work ethic vaulted her to the top of her sport.
She won the National Scholastic Surfing Association National Championship for the 18-and-under age group in 2005. She made her World Tour debut in 2009, with her best result coming in 2016 when she beat then six-time world champion Stephanie Gilmore and, world No. 1 at the time, Tyler Wright, in a third-place finish at the Fiji Women’s Pro.
