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A Sydney swimmer who survived a near-fatal encounter with a four-metre shark has described, in a TV interview, how she fought the animal underwater and clung to life after being pulled beneath the waves. Her account sheds light on the moments that followed the attack and the community response that helped her recovery.
The attack and immediate injuries
Leah Stewart, 35, was swimming beside Coogee Beach on 13 June when a large shark struck, dragging her beneath the surface. The animal, later identified as a roughly four-metre great white, bit down on her forearm.
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She suffered severe blood loss and later required the amputation of her left arm. Doctors performed multiple surgeries and placed her in a medically induced coma for more than a week as she began treatment and stabilisation.
How she fought back
In an interview with Nine’s 60 Minutes, Stewart recounted first mistaking the approaching animal for a very large dolphin. As the shark closed in, she said she quickly weighed what she might sacrifice to survive.
She told the programme: ‘Well, which limb am I willing to lose? ‘ and added: ‘I’m right-handed, so I decided, “Let’s do a left hook”.’
Her description of the struggle is blunt and spare. “And I twisted myself around and I just started punching it over and over and over. Just punch, punch, punch…” she said, later comparing the force of the animal to “fighting a dinosaur” and “punching a brick wall.”
Rescue on the beach
An off-duty volunteer lifeguard, Charlie Verco, had been training nearby on a paddleboard and moved to help after the attack. He described the scene to ABC: ‘The water got very bloody and she got taken under and after a few seconds, popped up again, and the shark had let her go.’
Emergency responders applied tourniquets to control bleeding. Lifeguards and an off-duty doctor administered CPR until paramedics arrived and carried Stewart to further care.
Recovery and public support
In the weeks after the incident Stewart thanked supporters on her GoFundMe page, writing that she feels ‘like I’ve been given a second chance at life, and I’m not going to waste it’. The fundraiser, created to help cover recovery medical care, attracted donations totalling more than €340,000 before the page was removed.
She added: ‘I want to say the biggest thank you for looking after me, for caring for my family, and for being generous enough to help my family through this.’ And: ‘I am constantly overwhelmed at how supportive people I know, and even strangers, have been, and how much they’ve cared about my family to make such an impact on our lives.’
