An Alabama teenager who suffered horrific injuries during a shark attack has returned to school after months of medical treatment and recovery. Lulu Gribbin spent 77 days in hospital after a trip to Florida in June turned into a nightmare, and she endured a ferocious shark attack that left her without her right leg and left hand. Her mother, Ann Blair Gribbin, documented her daughter’s recovery online and announced the moment she returned to school with her prosthetic arm and leg.
Fellow students at the Mountain Brook school welcomed Lulu with signs reading, “Welcome Home” and “Strong!” The teenager demonstrated her strength in coping with the trauma by wearing a t-shirt reading, “Before you ask, it was a shark.” Her mom said she could not be prouder of her daughter, who took part in a town parade to show off her new arm and leg and was greeted by cheering crowds.
The horrifying attack occurred at Seacrest Beach in the Floridian panhandle in early June. The Gribbin family and a group of friends took a trip to the seaside, and according to Ann Blair Gribbin’s online account, she returned from lunch to find a commotion on the beach and crowds gathered by the water’s edge as rumors of a shark attack spanned the area. Lulu’s sister Ellie then ran to her mom in a panic and told her that Lulu was at the center of the chaos and had sustained serious injuries. Ann later described her daughter’s wounds as “something out of a movie.”
South Walton District Fire Chief Ryan Crawford said that a 45-year-old woman was attacked in the same area on the same day and was seriously injured – losing a hand. Following that incident, two more calls of shark attacks four miles apart stunned first responders who found Lulu and 17-year-old McCray Faust with injuries requiring tourniquet application to prevent potentially fatal bleeding. McCray suffered serious injuries to one foot but was able to walk again eight weeks later.
After the attacks, Walton County authorities closed several miles of beach and warned residents to stay out of the Gulf of Mexico’s waters.
