Teenager bitten by shark in Cocoa Beach, family says

Tyler Vazquez | Florida Today

Show Caption Hide Caption Shark bite and spelling bee: NI90 Today on the News in 90, host Jade Bell brings you a couple of today's top stories.

A 15-year-old boy was bitten by a "6-foot bull shark" over Memorial Day weekend, according to family members.

Cody High of San Angelo, Texas was stable after being transported to a local hospital Saturday. He was bitten in Cocoa Beach near East Gadsden Lane that afternoon.



Brevard County Ocean Rescue Chief Eisen Witcher said his agency could not say for sure whether the bite was inflicted by a shark, but family members said they saw the fish.

What Do You Do If Bitten by a Shark Lindsay French, manager of the International Shark Attack File at the Florida Museum of Natural History at the University of Florida, gives tips about what to do if you are bitten by a shark. WILL GREENLEE/TCPALM

A GoFundMe page was set up to help Cody's family, who spent a year saving money to go on a Florida vacation, with medical expenses. Cody was released from the hospital Monday but will need rehab and further medical treatment, according to his cousin Janice Hotz.

Sharks Common in Florida Waters Several species of sharks, some more aggressive than others, can be found in Florida's waters. These are the most common. GINNY BEAGAN/FLORIDA TODAY

"On day one in Florida, the family is playing in the ocean on Cocoa Beach. Cody is playing with his niece and nephews when a 6-foot bull shark takes a huge bite out of his left calf," Hotz wrote on the GoFundMe, which has raised $420 of it's $20,000 goal.

"There were too many stitches to count," Hotz wrote, adding that Cody needed to be transferred to Arnold Palmer Children's hospital where a surgeon was able to treat him.

Cody is recovering and is expected to continue his vacation in a wheelchair.

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Contact Vazquez at tvazquez@floridatoday.com, 321-917-7491 or on Twitter @tyler_vazquez.