Two Russian tourists were quickly rushed to the hospital after one of them was bitten by a shark while filming content in the Maldives.
Social media influencer and singer Nastya Vitonova was swimming with sharks off the coast when the dangerous incident occurred, and a shark bit her hand.
Despite the alarming situation, Vitonova initially appeared calm, smiling and laughing, though she seemed to be in shock. In the footage, she half-smiles as she casually says, “I got bitten by a shark.”
However, as she sat on the side of her tour boat, her hand was visibly bleeding, with blood gushing out.
Moments later, the reality of the situation set in, and Vitonova began to cry, expressing her concern about the possibility of blood poisoning.
Her friend and fellow influencer, Isabelle Zagfarova, tried to comfort her on the boat, pointing out that she was bleeding heavily.
When Vitonova expressed concern about blood poisoning, Zagfarova reassured her, saying, “No, no, no, with sharks, the most important thing is that they don’t bite your finger off.
“Nastya, don’t worry. You won’t get a blood infection.”
The tour guide quickly took the two women to the nearest island, where Vitonova was treated at a hospital. Her hand was disinfected and she received stitches.
Later, speaking to the camera, she recounted the incident. She had been swimming among sharks when one suddenly bit her hand.
She explained, “A couple of seconds later, a shark bit my hand. It held me for two or three seconds, and all the worst scenarios started running through my head.”
“I immediately swam to the boat and stayed calm despite the panic inside. I smiled and laughed for the first five minutes, but it was just hysteria and a defensive reaction.”
She also mentioned that the shark’s bite went all the way to the bone, but her hand is now healing and she’s on the mend.
Interestingly, similar incidents have occurred in the Maldives before.
Elena Boyko, 44, shared her experience of being bitten on the hand during a “swim with sharks” excursion. She was part of a group of 12 and was urged by the guide to swim closer to the sharks for better photos. The guide even dragged her towards the sharks to capture impressive shots.
She later described how she remained calm, bandaging her hand to avoid panicking the other vacationers.
Russian news outlet SHOT reported that the sharks involved were believed to be nurse sharks, the most common type encountered by tourists in the Maldives, alongside reef sharks, whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, and occasionally, tiger and bull sharks.
