Mom attacked by great white shark awakens from coma and says three simple words

Australian woman Leah Stewart was swimming off Sydney’s Coogee Beach on 13 June when her nightmare began. Witnesses at the beach said they suddenly heard a piercing scream, then saw that there was blood in the water.

Stewart, 34, was rescued from the water, but witnesses say (via The Guardian) that it was immediately clear she’d been bitten by a large shark, with her injuries consistent with those inflicted by a great white. Her family has confirmed on a fundraising page that in the attack she suffered “severe and life-threatening injuries with multiple bites across her arms and legs, lacerations and fractures throughout her body, and extreme blood loss.”

Stewart was rushed to the hospital and underwent five days of surgery, including an arm amputation. More surgery is to come, but doctors chose to intubate and sedate her, then put her in an induced coma after her operations.

Now her brother Josh Stewart revealed she’s been brought back to consciousness. The first words from her mouth? “I love you”.

As her brother detailed:

“After a week of life-support and repeat surgeries, doctors were able to extubate Leah and reduce her level of sedation to bring her out of the induced coma for a short period of time. This allowed Leah to share her first words “I love you” with her Mum and partner who have been by her side in ICU since the incident. Her first thoughts were with her daughter and wanted to check she was OK.”

“For us this feels like a miracle”

Josh said this felt like a miracle and what the family had been praying for:

“This is a lot faster than anyone expected, and for us this feels like a miracle and is everything so many of us have hoped and prayed for over the past week. Leah remains in ICU and will continue to require this high level of care and support for some time.”

As of writing, the fundraiser has raised almost $500,000, which will be used to “support her recovery process and to access prosthetics, rehabilitation, and the ongoing care and adjustments she will need to try and return to her life being an amazing Mum to her baby daughter.”

Meanwhile, questions are raised over the safety of swimmers at Sydney beaches. The Guardian reports that shark-spotting drones are active at multiple beaches and “additional” measures are planned.

Marine biologist and shark expert Rob Harcourt is quoted in the article as advising people not to swim solo: “I wouldn’t swim alone. You’re less likely to spot an animal that’s coming in, whereas if you’re swimming in a group, there are more eyes in the water. And … you’re more intimidating to the predator.”