Breaking news -- Police report apparent shark bite in Fernandina waters

By AMELIA A. HART
amelia.hart@mynassausun.com

FERNANDINA BEACH — A visiting Birmingham, Ala., woman apparently was bitten by a shark this morning in the ocean of Beach Access 39 opposite Ozell Avenue.

Deputy Fire Chief Jeffrey Bunch said the woman, identified in a Fernandina Beach Police press release as Jennifer Castion, told him she was wading about chest deep in the water around 11 a.m. when she felt something grab her leg.

After a struggle, it let her leg go, Bunch said. Once ashore, the woman’s husband wrapped her leg in a towel, took her to the nearby beach house where they were staying and called 911, he said.

Bunch said the woman never lost consciousness and was “remarkably calm.”

She was flown via air ambulance to Shands Jacksonville hospital, according to Bunch. Her condition was not available. A nursing supervisor said she wasn’t listed in the hospital’s system early Friday evening.

If confirmed, this would be only the third shark bite in the city since the 1890s, Bunch said. The second was a diver sometime in the 1960s.

Purple “Dangerous Marine Life” and red “Dangerous Conditions” warning flags have been posted at city beaches and lifeguards are advising visitors of the attack.

There was no evidence of sharks in the waters off Amelia Island in an aerial survey this afternoon, although the ocean water was relatively clear.

The Fernandina Beach Civil Air Patrol has been asked to keep an eye on the shoreline and to report any sightings throughout the weekend. Lifeguards also will monitor the water throughout the weekend and report any changes.