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A woman attacked by a shark in Sydney has spoken out from her hospital bed as she recovers in intensive care after a marathon operation to save her right leg.
29-year-old Lauren O’Neill lost liters of blood after the shark ripped open her leg below the knee and bit the bone on Monday evening.
But her limb was saved by surgeons at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney’s CBD, who operated on her through the night.
Ms O’Neill released a statement from her hospital bed on Wednesday afternoon claiming she was simply going for a swim after work when the attack happened.
Mrs O Neil thanked her neighbors for rushing to her rescue, including hero vet Dr Fiona Cargo, who stopped the flow of blood until paramedics arrived.
Lauren O’Neill, 29, lost liters of blood after the shark tore her leg open below the knee and bit her to the bone. Mrs O’Neill is pictured on a stretcher
Lauren O’Neill (pictured) who was mauled by a bull shark in a shocking attack in Sydney Harbour
Ms O’Neill said she would like to thank ‘the heroic and very kind neighbors for the vital help provided’.
She was also ‘extremely grateful to the NSW Ambulance paramedics and Kings Cross Police for their quick and caring response to the scene’.
She highlighted the care of “doctors at St. Vincent de Paul Hospital, in particular the specialized surgical teams who worked through the night.”
She also thanked her “beautiful family, friends and colleagues for their unwavering care and support.”
She is now focusing on her recovery and thanked the public for their “outpouring of support and kindness.”
Her comment came after a marine biologist raised questions about why she was swimming in the shark-infested harbor when night fell, as that’s when sharks are most active.
Emergency services rushed to a private boatyard in Elizabeth Bay at 7.45pm on Monday and found Ms O’Neill with a serious bite to her right leg and suffering from ‘major blood loss’.
But before that, veterinarian Dr. Crago and her wife Georgia, who live in a nearby apartment, to their aid after hearing repeated screams of “shark attack!” heard.
Ms O’Neill was attacked near a jetty in Elizabeth Bay in Sydney Harbor (map shown)
Dr. Fiona Crago (right), her wife Georgia (left) and their neighbors provided first aid to Mrs O’Neill until emergency services arrived
“She suffered serious injuries to her right leg and lost a lot of blood,” Dr Crago told Channel 10.
‘Neighbors had already started giving her first aid. We had quite a few people who were so helpful.
“People were throwing down towels and blankets to keep her warm, but I just focused on what I had to do, which was stop the blood flow and bandage the leg as best I could with what I had and just stabilize it. And then put on a tourniquet.’
Dr. Crago, whose actions saved Ms O’Neill’s life, said she normally carried bandages with her because of her work but did not have the usual amount on hand in recent days because she had swapped cars.
“But by some strange coincidence, my wife had gone out yesterday and bought two new compression bandages for a different purpose, so I knew exactly where they were and just grabbed them, so it was lucky,” she said.