WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, N.C. — A 15-year-old boy needed more than a dozen stitches after officials believe he was bitten by a shark while in the water at a North Carolina beach, WTVD reported.
Wrightsville Beach Fire Department Chief Glen Rogers said it happened Tuesday afternoon.
[ ALSO READ: 7-year-old girl bitten by shark at North Carolina beach ]
The teen’s family said he was in thigh-deep water when he got knocked over by a wave. Then when he got up, he felt pain and realized he was bitten on his right calf.
911 Ocean Rescue and the police department responded and took him to a hospital.
“He’s in pain of course, but the doctors took really good care of him,” one family member told WTVD.
Officials said nobody got a good look at what bit the boy but said they believe it was a shark. Rogers said he thinks it was a wide-mouth sand shark.
(Watch Below: How to avoid a shark attack)
This browser does not support the video element.