A teenager is recovering after being attacked by a shark at North Carolina’s Outer Banks region. Nick Arthur, 16, had been 25-feet out when the shark bit into his thigh and wouldn’t let go.

“At first I thought he was screaming out of joy, and then I looked at him and saw the shark,” Arthur’s father, Tim Arthur, said. “He was screaming, 'Get it off me. Let me go,' and I jumped into action.”

As Nick Arthur and his father attacked the shark, he was able to get free when the shark let go of his thigh to try and bite his hand. Nick Arthur’s sister had also been in the water during the attack but was able to quickly swim to shore.

Nick Arthur was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment and required 17 stitches on his left leg, as well as a few on his right thumb. The shark ended up leaving around 40 teeth prints on the teen’s leg and several scrapes on his hand.

The National Park Service confirmed that the attack took place a little over 2 miles shout of Salvo, North Carolina, at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. The family had been on vacation from their home in Oak Ridge, North Carolina.

Despite Nick Arthur’s harrowing experience, experts report that shark attacks are down worldwide due to the coronavirus pandemic. With fewer people visiting beaches, only 18 unprovoked attacks were reported between Jan. 1 and June 18, compared to 24 during the same period in 2019.

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