‘It was like a scene out of Jaws’: Horror as British boy, eight, is savaged by sharks while on family holiday in The Bahamas leaving him with serious leg wounds before being dragged to safety by his sister, 12
- Finley Downer, eight, was attacked by three nurse sharks in horrific ‘Jaws attack’
- He was dragged to safety by his sister, 12, during excursion to Compass Cay
- Finley’s father, Michael, 44, is furious the tour guides told him sharks were safe
- However tour operator said the family went, without a guide, into a lagoon
A British schoolboy was savaged by three sharks while he was on holiday in the Caribbean and left with ‘chunks of flesh hanging off’ both of his legs.
Finley Downer, eight, was in The Bahamas with his family last week on an excursion to the protected harbour Compass Cay when the horrific attack happened.
The terrified youngster had to be dragged to safety by his 12-year-old sister during the £200 per person trip after at least three nurse sharks, unprovoked, suddenly bit both of the boy’s legs.
Finley’s father, Michael, 44, had booked the luxurious summer holiday with his three children, Finley, Lily, nine, and Emily, 12, alongside the five-island excursion that also included guided swimming with pigs.
Mr Downer said his children saw a shiver of sharks swimming in a nearby lagoon later in the trip next to a crowd of holidaymakers and went over – unaware they were feeding on scraps being thrown to them.
Finley’s father, Michael, 44, (pictured) had booked the luxurious summer holiday with his three children, Finley, Lily, nine, and Emily, 12, alongside the five-island excursion that also included guided swimming with pigs
Finley Downer, eight, was in The Bahamas with his family last week on a guided excursion to the protected harbour Compass Cay when the horrific attack happened (Pictured: Compass Cay in The Bahamas)
Finley’s father Michael said his children saw a shiver of sharks swimming in a nearby lagoon later in the trip (Pictured: Sharks at Compass Cay in The Bahamas)
Tour operator Exuma Escapes says that the nurse sharks at Compass Cay (pictured) ‘were initially brought as pets, however, after gaining popularity through tourism, the Compass Cay Marina has turned the environment into a sanctuary’
Mr Downer told The Sun: ‘Suddenly, I heard a terrified scream and saw dozens circling Finley.
‘There was so much blood. Bits of his leg were hanging off. My son could have been killed. It was like a scene out of Jaws.’
The youngster was luckily lifted out of the water by his quick-thinking sister Lily and was taken to the nearest hospital on a golf buggy.
Sales manager Mr Downer, is now back home with his family in Kettering, Northamptonshire after also paying for a £2,000 flight to take Finley to Nassau for a three-hour operation.
Finley had to be dragged to safety by his 12-year-old sister during the £200 per person excursion after at least three nurse sharks, unprovoked, suddenly bit both of the boy’s legs
He has been left furious that the tour guides told him the sharks were safe despite Finley now having to use a wheelchair as his leg wounds recover.
However, the operator Exuma Escapes, said the family went, without a guide, into a lagoon that is not used on its tour.
Their website says that the nurse sharks at Compass Cay ‘were initially brought as pets, however, after gaining popularity through tourism, the Compass Cay Marina has turned the environment into a sanctuary.’
It added: ‘The sharks are smooth to the touch as they swim up and rub against your legs. They have a brown tone and usually don’t mind closeness to other sharks and humans.’