Shark attack victim Leeanne Ericson, with her boyfriend Dusty Phillips, with her wetsuit that was shredded by a shark on April 29th. She keeps an upbeat attitude even as she faces a long road of recovery. She is pictured in Capistrano Beach on Wednesday, August 30, 2017. Ericson says she is still not ready to visit San Onofre State Beach where the attack occurred. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
By LAYLAN CONNELLY | [email protected] | Orange County Register
It’s a tiny group, and no one wants to join:
The Shark Bite Club.
But on a warm day in April, Leeanne Ericson became a member. The San Diego mother of three was enjoying a swim at San Onofre State Beach as her boyfriend, Dusty Phillips, surfed nearby, when an estimated 10-foot great white shark clamped down on her right leg and buttocks and dragged her under the surface.
Ericson survived. But in a moment quicker than a blink, her life was changed. She joined swimmer Maria Korcsmaros — who was bitten a year earlier near Newport Beach — as one of two people known to have survived a major shark attack in local waters.
What makes Ericson influential isn’t the bite — it’s what happened in the months after.