Shark attack at Pepper Park Beach, St. Lucie County, Florida, Usa

Shark attack details: Pepper Park Beach, St. Lucie County, Florida, 12-Mar-2023
Date of attack: March 12th 2023
Location: Pepper Park Beach, St. Lucie County, Florida
Shark species: Spinner shark
Name of victim: Matthew Picarelli
Age of victim: 36 years old
Sex of victim: M
Activity: Surfing
Injury: The bite severed a tendon and chipped a bone in the right foot

Body Surfer Bitten by Shark at Pepper Park Beach, Florida

On March 12, 2023, 36-year-old Matthew Picarelli was bitten by a shark while body surfing at Pepper Park Beach in St. Lucie County, Florida. The incident occurred around 11:00 a.m., 40 to 50 feet from shore.

Picarelli saw the shark’s fin and tail just before feeling a sharp pain in his right foot. The shark clamped down briefly before swimming away. He alerted his friend and exited the water. Emergency responders arrived at 11:50 a.m. and helped transport him to the hospital, where he received 50 stitches to repair a severed tendon and a chipped bone.

A witness on the beach believed the shark was a four- to five-foot spinner shark.

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