Woman and teenager injured in two shark attacks on the same day in Florida

Two separate shark attacks in Walton County on the Florida Panhandle injured three people Friday afternoon, prompting authorities to temporarily close the area to swimmers.

According to Ryan Crawford, fire chief of the South Walton Fire District, the incidents occurred on two neighboring beaches and 90 minutes apart.

At around 1:20 p.m., a 45-year-old woman “was reportedly swimming with her husband past the first sandbar” near WaterSound Beach when she was attacked by a shark, Crawford said in a press conference Friday.

She suffered “significant injuries to her midsection and pelvis as well as amputation of her left forearm.”

Lifeguards and sheriff’s deputies responded immediately and began treatment on the beach. She was later flown by helicopter to a medical center where she was in critical condition.

The second incident occurred shortly before 3 p.m. in the Sandy Shores Court area of ​​Seacrest Beach, about 4 miles east of the first location.

Two teenage girls, probably between 15 and 17 years old, were with a group of friends in the waist-deep water of the first sandbank when they were attacked.

One victim suffered “severe injuries to an upper and lower extremity” and was taken to a local trauma center in critical condition.

The other teen suffered minor injuries to her right foot. She was in stable condition and taken to a medical center, Crawford said.

The attacks prompted the Walton County Sheriff’s Office and the South Walton Fire District to temporarily close some beaches in the county.

“We are making beachgoers aware that lifeguards and beach officials may attempt to keep people in the immediate area out of the water,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement Friday afternoon.

Double red flags are now flying on beaches in the area, warning the public of dangerous conditions and closing beach waters to swimming. Anyone entering the ocean faces a $500 fine.