Two women from Brevard County are on the road to recovery after a shark attack in the Bahamas, with doctors expecting them to make a full recovery.Related: Friends from Brevard County both bitten by shark in Bahamas"I'm super grateful that I'm still here," said Rileigh Decker, one of the victims in the shark attack. On Feb. 7, Decker and her friend Summer Layman left Melbourne for a dream vacation in the Bahamas. However, hours after landing, their fun came to a halt when a shark bit them after jumping into the ocean from a boat.The girls were eventually brought back to a hospital in Melbourne, where Decker received multiple surgeries. "Well, it doesn't look as bad as I thought it would. It actually looks pretty OK," Decker said.Doctors at Orlando Health, who are caring for Decker, said the shark crushed bones around her ankle and knee."Our main goal is to restore the leg to great function so she can be a 20-year-old girl and be back to normal," said Dr. Mark Munro, an orthopedic surgeon at Orlando Health. "We had to repair some muscles and also clean the bone so infection doesn't occur.""It's going to take some time, again, not just with the nerve injury but with the muscle injury she had as well," said Dr. Gretchen Stieg, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon at Orlando Health."It's going to be healing at this point, and physical therapy to make sure we don't have too much scar tissue. That her motion is good."Doctors said it could take a year for Decker's nerve to get back to normal, but so far, her recovery is progressing well. "I got up and kind of hopped around on the walker yesterday and a little bit today, and I got into this chair today, which was good, so slow progress," Decker said.Decker expressed gratitude for the people who quickly got her and her friend to safety and thanked the medical team for their help in her recovery.
Two women from Brevard County are on the road to recovery after a shark attack in the Bahamas, with doctors expecting them to make a full recovery.
Related: Friends from Brevard County both bitten by shark in Bahamas
"I'm super grateful that I'm still here," said Rileigh Decker, one of the victims in the shark attack.
On Feb. 7, Decker and her friend Summer Layman left Melbourne for a dream vacation in the Bahamas.
However, hours after landing, their fun came to a halt when a shark bit them after jumping into the ocean from a boat.
The girls were eventually brought back to a hospital in Melbourne, where Decker received multiple surgeries.
"Well, it doesn't look as bad as I thought it would. It actually looks pretty OK," Decker said.
Doctors at Orlando Health, who are caring for Decker, said the shark crushed bones around her ankle and knee.
"Our main goal is to restore the leg to great function so she can be a 20-year-old girl and be back to normal," said Dr. Mark Munro, an orthopedic surgeon at Orlando Health. "We had to repair some muscles and also clean the bone so infection doesn't occur."
"It's going to take some time, again, not just with the nerve injury but with the muscle injury she had as well," said Dr. Gretchen Stieg, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon at Orlando Health."It's going to be healing at this point, and physical therapy to make sure we don't have too much scar tissue. That her motion is good."
Doctors said it could take a year for Decker's nerve to get back to normal, but so far, her recovery is progressing well.
"I got up and kind of hopped around on the walker yesterday and a little bit today, and I got into this chair today, which was good, so slow progress," Decker said.
Decker expressed gratitude for the people who quickly got her and her friend to safety and thanked the medical team for their help in her recovery.