MILTON, Fla. — A Milton man is recovering after being bitten by an 8-foot bull shark on Saturday. He was spearfishing in the Gulf when it happened.
Chance Armand spoke with WEAR News on Tuesday about the moment he saw the shark coming for him, and what happened next.
“I just want to start with God is good, he 100% was looking after me,” Armand said.
Armand says it’s not unusual to see sharks while he’s spearfishing. In fact, he enjoys it.
“I love seeing sharks, I’ve always been the kid since I was young watching Shark Week, geeking out about it, and telling everybody, ‘I want to be a marine biologist,'” Armand said.
He and his friends were about 20 miles out from Pensacola Pass. As they dove and fished, an 8-foot bull shark kept showing up.
“They’ve obviously become accustomed to knowing boats and humans, and in this case, even the sound of a speargun going off, is associated with an easy meal,” Armand said. “This particular shark was the third time I saw it that day.”
He kept the fish he’d just speared close to his body, hoping to prevent movement that would attract the shark. However, it didn’t work.
“On my ascent, I looked down and saw the shark coming up from below,” Armand said. “In this case, he fully committed, and by the time I acknowledged he wasn’t going to stop, all I could do was put my knee in between him and the fish that was on my chest.”
The instinctive reaction protected his internal organs, but the shark got a sizeable bite out of his knee and thigh.
“In the future, I’m definitely going to have a robust med kit on board,” Armand said. “We were able to fashion a makeshift tourniquet out of a t-shirt, a filet knife, and a speargun band.”
He smiled for pictures on the boat ride back, thankful to be alive and determined to keep it in perspective.
“He bit me, and I was just more frustrated than anything,” Armand said. “Honestly, I can say the worst part of it for me was losing my speargun.”
It looks a little rough right now, but the injury hasn’t affected his ability or his desire to get back in the water.
“I got stitched up and I’m hoping the wounds close in time for grouper season in September,” Armand said.
Chance also talked about the increasing number of sharks in local fishing spots and what he thinks should be done. Watch his full interview with WEAR News here: