Chance Swanson is grateful for a second chance at life after being bitten by a shark while surfing at Hanalei Bay last week.
Swanson, 33, a Kauai lifeguard, is still trying to process what happened Nov. 5 when a shark chomped on his leg, severing a major artery.
“This is super surreal,” he said at a news conference Friday at The Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu. “I never thought in my life I’d get bitten by a shark. I was told the chances are pretty slim, so I never imagined.”
Swanson said his strong Christian faith kept him going while he was floating in the ocean, waiting to be rescued. He is grateful to those who spotted him and his fellow lifeguards who responded quickly on rescue watercraft to save his life.
His doctors at The Queen’s Medical Center said the tourniquet applied by rescuers was key to Swanson’s survival and that he had lost quite a lot of blood before being medivaced to Oahu.
“When he got here he had some signs associated with pretty significant blood loss,” trauma surgeon Dr. Dylan Davey said Friday. “And he also had that tourniquet in place for a long time, for hours, because of the time that it took to get here to care. But despite all that, he’s tough, he’s a champion. He did great.”
A team of doctors at Queen’s quickly worked to reconstruct the artery and blood vessels that were damaged, along with other procedures to help preserve Swanson’s leg. Dr. Peter Deptula, a plastic surgeon, shared that the reconstructive measures involve complicated repairs to skin, muscle, bone, blood vessels and nerves.
Given that Swanson is young and healthy, they believe he has good potential for rehabilitation. Still, after four surgeries and more to come, Swanson faces a long recovery ahead.
Kauai County officials said Swanson was off-duty while surfing near the Pine Trees break at Hanalei Bay when the shark bite occurred at about 3:10 p.m. As Swanson tells it, he had been waiting for a dirt bike part to come and decided to go surfing when it did not.
He caught two waves, then repositioned himself on the inside, Swanson recalled.
“Next thing you know, something’s just chomping down on my leg with so much force. I couldn’t see where it was coming from but I just knew it was a shark, and somehow it let me go.”
Afterward, he clung to his surfboard for what felt like 10 minutes, hoping for rescue, and said some prayers. He tried several times to tie a tourniquet himself but was too weak. When his fellow lifeguards got to him, Swanson thought then he had a chance at survival. After that, he mostly remembers being urged to keep his eyes open and stay awake.
He was taken first to Wilcox Medical Center, then flown to Queen’s.
Swanson, who has worked as a lifeguard with Kauai Ocean Safety Bureau for eight years, said he’s now experienced what it’s like to be on the other side on his job — that is, to be the one getting rescued. He thanked the lifeguards who saved his life by tying the tourniquet on his leg in the water.
He said he still loves the ocean and hopes to get back out there again. As for sharks, Swanson said, “It’s fine. It happens.”
Swanson’s mother, Rose Keaweamahi-Hooveler, launched a GoFundMe web page to cover the some of the costs of his hospital stay and surgeries. She has been amazed at the outpouring of support from all over the world.
“I’m overwhelmed with the support and love,” she said. “I just want to say thank you to everyone on GoFundMe, and just for your prayers.”
Swanson’s brother, Tyler Swanson, said he looks up to his older sibling as a role model. Both worked as lifeguards in the same towers. The Ocean Safety Bureau crew is like a second family, he said, and they are all rooting for his brother’s recovery.
“This just shines a light on that,” he said. “When something hits close to you, you can see the grace of helping other people. It shines a light on the goodness of everything.”
Chance Swanson, who had never undergone surgery prior to the shark bite, said he is grateful to everyone who donated to his GoFundMe account.
“You’re going to make my life way easier when it comes to recovery, and I’m just so thankful for you all donating to that — really appreciate it. Love you guys.”
Swanson is the third person injured in a “shark incident” in Hawaiian waters so far this year, according to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Hawaii Sharks website. The length and species of the predator that bit him is unknown.
On July 18, a swimmer was bitten on the left foot about 3 feet from shore at Makapuu. The shark was an estimated 5 feet in length but the species is unknown. On Jan. 11, someone who was swimming with sharks suffered severe lacerations on the left arm when bitten by a Galapagos shark about 3 miles off Haleiwa.
Source: The Garden Island
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