Shark attack victim survives, all limbs intact

An Orangeville, Ont., mother of two who was attacked by a shark while swimming in front of her Cancun resort will survive with all her limbs intact, the woman's father said Wednesday as he sat by his daughter's bedside.

Alberto Baldassari told the National Post his daughter, Nicole Moore, a 38-year-old nurse, is awake and breathing after undergoing an extensive seven-hour surgery Monday to repair what he called "severe wounds" to her left arm and leg believed to have been caused by a shark.

"It's a very unusual circumstance, they tell me," said Mr. Baldassari, who arrived in the popular Mexican seaside town on Tuesday to be with his daughter. "Everything considered, she is doing relatively well at this stage. As soon as her condition allows, we will have an air ambulance take her back to Canada."

He said his daughter would not be speaking to reporters.

Contrary to many local media reports, Mr. Baldassari said doctors did not have to amputate any of his daughter's limbs, but noted any long-term effects of the injuries are not known.

"Some of the reports have been grossly exaggerated," he said.

Ms. Moore's husband was expected to arrive in Cancun late on Wednesday to be with his wife. The couple's two daughters, aged 6 and 7, remained at home in Orangeville. Mr. Baldassari said his daughter was in Cancun with a group of 10 friends celebrating the 50th birthday of their fitness instructor.

Ms. Moore had just finished a pickup volleyball game shortly before noon on Monday in front of her resort, the Cancun Caribe Park Royal Grand, and decided to step into the water to get cooled off, her father said.

Kelly Rowat, a guest at the Cancun Gran Caribe Real Resort and Spa next door, was also in the water with a group of about 20 people at the time and says swimmers were suddenly ordered out of the water by a lifeguard.

"We were no more than waist-deep and I looked out and could see people pointing at something in the water," recounted Ms. Rowat, 44, of Moncton, N.B., who is vacationing in Cancun with her 15-year-old daughter, Brooklyn. "I looked and thought, 'Oh my God, it's a shark.' It had to be a good six feet long."

As swimmers were leaving the water, she said, four resort employees on Sea-Doos headed off shore and surrounded the animal, revving their engines in an attempt to keep it away from the fleeing tourists.

"The next thing I see is two Sea-Doos pulling someone up. There was so much blood in the water I had to walk away," Ms. Rowat said.

At that point, Ms. Rowat's daughter Brooklyn returned to the beach after a trip to the bar, and watched as Ms. Moore was treated by a group of people on shore.

"She was conscious, but not talking," Brooklyn said. "Her left leg and shoulder had bite marks. It was almost as if her leg, which had a gash down to the bone, had gotten bitten and then she reached down to fend off the shark with her arm ... there wasn't much left of her leg."

At first, Ms. Moore only had one friend to help her, Brooklyn recalled, but was soon joined by a nurse staying at the resort who took control of the situation, ordering people to hand over their shirts and towels to wrap the wounds. A group of people then carried Ms. Moore away, she said.

"It's kind of nerve wracking because I love swimming and snorkelling, but now I'm kind of scared to do all that stuff," Brooklyn said.

The beach in front of the resort remained closed on Wednesday as resort officials searched for the shark.

Local news outlet Diario de la Verdad reported that local lifeguards confirmed sightings of three sharks south of resort where the attack took place.

Ms. Rowat said hotel staff told her two sharks had been spotted in the area, but other guests were being told not to go in the water because the "waves were too high."

"They're just saying you can't go in because of the waves, but I know it's because they haven't caught the shark," she said. "It's been pretty hush-hush."

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