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04/20/2003 Stephen Flowers (Florida)

Shark Attack Survivors News Archive for Shark Attacks in 2003
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sharkbait
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04/20/2003 Stephen Flowers (Florida)

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Shark bite season starts

The 18-year-old Ormond Beach surfer and lifeguard knew the second he felt a burning pain in his right foot he had become another statistic in what local surfers call "Shark Shallows," a 2-mile stretch of beach south of Ponce de Leon Inlet known for shark activity.

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Stephen Flowers, 18, of Ormond Beach sits in his hospital bed at Bert Fish Medical Center in New Smyrna Beach talking to his father, Carl, as he recovers from a shark bite to his right foot on April 23, 2003.

Flowers' shark bite last Monday was the third reported within three days in Volusia County.

On April 19, an 11-year-old Sanford boy was bitten on the left foot while on his boogie board north of the Flagler Avenue beach ramp in New Smyrna Beach.

On April 20, a 23-year-old Port Orange surfer received a minor bite while surfing near Sunglow Pier in Daytona Beach Shores.

In neigh boring Brevard County, sharks bit two people that same weekend and two others the previous week, bringing to seven the total number of shark bites reported in east-central Florida so far this year.

But fish and wildlife officials don't think the trend will continue or that there is a bumper crop of sharks like Volusia County saw in 2001, when 22 bites were recorded with the International Shark Attack File in Gainesville. Eleven of those bites happened within a 10-day period.

"What we are seeing is a bite-and-release (action) and it's over quick," said Brent Winner, associate research scientist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in St. Petersburg. "About 90 percent of the bites are mistaken identity."

Flowers had just finished surfing a wave and rolled over in chest-deep water to get back on his surfboard when the shark struck.

"I grabbed the board to get on it, but it pulled me under," Flowers recounted Wednesday from his hospital bed at Bert Fish Medical Center, where he has undergone two surgeries to close a deep flesh wound near his ankle. "It let go, and I was able to get on the board and paddle to shore. No one was around me, so I had to walk a short distance to get help."

Earlier in the morning, Flowers said, he had seen dozens of sharks and baitfish swim by as he sat on his 6-foot Erie surfboard in the rough waters.

"As the water warms up, the baitfish come in from deeper waters to feed in the estuaries," said Winner. "If there is an abundance of baitfish in the area, there will be sharks nearby. Sharks are opportunistic feeders."

Alexia Morgan, assistant curator of the International Shark Attack File, said she believes shark encounters will slow down in the next few weeks as spring storms stop stirring up the waters and fish start to migrate differently.

Most bites occur in April and October, according to the agency which tracks shark bites around the world.

Capt. Rob Horster, with Volusia County Beach Services, said people should realize they are swimming and surfing in the wild -- the Atlantic Ocean -- which is home to sharks and fish.

"People need to understand it is the ocean and the reality is, sharks are big fish with sharp teeth and they do accidentally bite humans in the hand or foot as they investigate for food," he said. "They are not man-eaters."

And the few bites the area has seen likely won't slow beach traffic, he said.

"Easter weekend was very busy," he said. "It may scare some of the visitors, but the locals will still keep coming."


http://www.news-journalonline.com/speci ... 042803.htm
sharkbait
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Post by sharkbait »

He´s back in the swim

By SANDRA FREDERICK
STAFF WRITER


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Stephen Flower
NEW SMYRNA BEACH — Despite a deep scar and some residual numbness in his right foot, Stephen Flowers continues to ride the waves in an area surfers know as "Shark Shallows."

The 18-year-old Ormond Beach resident said he was back in the water about a mile south of the Ponce Inlet jetty shortly after recovering from two surgeries to close a deep wound and repair a torn tendon caused by a shark bite on April 20. He was the third shark bite victim along Volusia County beaches in a three-day period, and told News-Journal readers about the experience in April 28 editions.

"For the most part, I can move my whole foot," he said from his home last week. "I have a long scar across my foot and my thigh where the doctors did a skin graft. Other than that, I am fine."

Flowers said the healing time prevented him from performing his summer job as a lifeguard. "I took it easy for the summer," he said.

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News-Journal file/JIM TILLER
Surfer Stephen Flowers, 18, Ormond Beach, rides a wave Nov. 26, 2003, several months after he suffered a shark bite while surfing off New Smyrna Beach.
During the time off, he surfed every day and reevaluated his life. He decided to join the U.S. Navy, hopefully to train in search and rescue. He leaves in April.

"I am told that if you place in the top of your class, you can pick what city you want to go to," he said. "I can pick to be near water (so I can surf), so it´s an incentive to do real well."

In the meantime, Flowers said he would continue to ride his 6-foot Erie surfboard, without fear.

"I see the sharks out there all the time," he said. "I figured the chances of getting bitten twice by a shark are very slim."

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