San Onofre State Beach is currently closed after a shark attacked a woman late on Saturday afternoon at the beach, which is popular with surfers in Orange County in Southern California. This is reportedly the second Shark Attack within a year in the area. Leeanne Ericson is currently fighting for her life, according to her mother.

State Park aide Travis Lara said in a statement that four women were out on the water at the popular “church” surf spot, located north of San Onofre surf beach when it happened. Two of the women were on their surfboards, while the other two were swimming in the surf nearby.

Shark attacks woman surfer off ‘Church’ surf spot

Lara said Ericson was reportedly wearing swim fins, wading in the water when the shark bit her “glute” and apparently right down her thigh. Two other surfers managed to pull Ericson out of the water, while someone on the beach reportedly used a leash from a surfboard on her upper thigh in an attempt to stem the bleeding.

Lara said at the time that she was unsure if the injuries were life-threatening and no details were yet available as to the type or size of the shark. Lara went on to add that the beach will likely be closed for a minimum of 72 hours, adding they have had some shark sightings recently, but that the attack was a first for that particular beach.

Todd Lewis, Central Sector superintendent for California State Parks, later said beaches in the proximity of the attack have been closed. Lewis added that lifeguards at Camp Pendleton have recommended the beach remain closed for at least another 24 hours. The beach closure would mean no surfing, swimming or diving on the coast in an area around a mile to the south and north of San Onofre State Beach.

Female surfer is fighting for her life after shark attack

According to a report by The Orange County Register, as soon as he heard the words “shark attack” Thomas Williams, 29, saw Ericson being carried from the water on a surfboard. He then saw the blood. Williams has recently passed his EMT training test and he launched into action with a handful of other people on the beach.

According to Williams, the bite was “definitely to the point” and Ericson’s hamstring was gone. He added that all the back of Ericson’s leg was missing, saying that without immediate care, her injuries would be life-threatening. After the bleeding was stabilized, Ericson was taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, San Diego.

GoFundMe page set up for shark attack victim

As reported by the LA Times, Ericson’s mother. Christine McKnerney Leidle, wrote on Sunday that her daughter is “fighting for her life” after the shark attack. Leidle went on to say that Ericson is expected to have several surgeries, adding that her recovery will likely be lengthy. She said her daughter is a single mother with three young children depending on her and that she will have a long road ahead of her.

Leidle has set up a GoFundMe page for her daughter in an attempt to cover medical costs. At the time of writing, in just 18 hours since it was set up, $8,198 of the $200,000 goal has been offered by 149 people.
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