Florida surfer bit by a shark at the same beach he was bitten at 11 years ago

STUART, Fla. — A Florida man is recovering from a shark bite just over a decade after being bitten at the same beach.

Cole Taschman, 28, was surfing with two friends at Bathtub Beach in Stuart on the state's east coast last Friday afternoon when the attack occurred, Treasure Coast Newspapers reported.

“As I was paddling against the current, my feet are behind me, they were laying flat on the board, and an about 8- or 9-foot (2.4- or 2.7-metre) either bull shark or tiger shark came up behind me and snatched my feet,” Taschman said.

Three tendons were completely torn and one was partially torn in the attack. Two surgeries have left the fishing charter captain with 93 stitches and about a dozen staples. He spent four days at the hospital before heading home to recover, and he might need another surgery.

Taschman was 16 years old in 2013 when a blacktip reef shark bit his hand while surfing at the same beach.

“Same beach, same exact rock, same place, same reef, same everything,” Taschman said.

Taschman’s girlfriend has launched a GoFundMe fundraiser to help with bills. And Ohana Surf Shop in Stuart is raffling off a surfboard or a fishing charter trip with 100 per cent of the proceeds going to Taschman.