Swimmer mauled by shark at Gunyah Beach in Sydney breaks her silence: ‘I should be dead’

A woman who survived a suspected bull shark attack says she “should be dead” and now “intends to buy a lottery ticket”.

Mangyon Zhang, 57, who goes by “Mani”, was paddleboarding at Gunyah Beach in Bundeena, in Sydney’s southern outskirts, when she was mauled by about 1.30pm on Friday.

Her partner Maria Masutti shared an update on Zhang’s condition on social media on Saturday, saying she is in “surprisingly good spirits”.

“My beautiful partner Mangyon [Mani] is doing as well as can be expected,” Masutti said.

“She has quite a severe laceration to her outer right leg, to the bone — calf and thigh, and inside thigh.

“Thankfully it missed the arteries.”

Masutti said Zhang underwent a four-hour surgery on Friday, but medical staff had to leave the wound open so they could perform another surgery over the weekend to further clean and assess her injuries.

“She lost quite a lot of blood and had transfusions,” Masutti said.

“It was a very traumatic experience and although she didn’t feel pain or see the shark (just left a strong ‘whoosh’ sensation and then numbness and lots of blood), it took a while to get attention and she couldn’t move her body to swim and was afraid of splashing in case the shark came back … she thought she was going to drown,” she said.

Masutti thanked bystanders who rushed to Zhang’s aid and staff at St George Hospital.

“She was brought around this morning and first thing she said was, ‘I should be dead and that guy saved my life’ (thank you Blake in particular, Ellen, Josh, Roger, Tomako and all those that rallied around),” Masutti continued.

“Mani is now comfortable and in surprisingly good spirits and intends to buy a lottery ticket.”

Zhang was alone 10 metres from shore when she was bitten.

A bull shark had been spotted several times in recent weeks, with authorities saying the species was likely responsible based on images of Zhang’s bite wound.

“Sutherland Shire Council has advised local beaches, including Cronulla Beach, Elouera Beach, North Cronulla Beach, Wanda Beach, Greenhills Beach, Horderns Beach, Gunyah Beach and Silver Beach, are closed until further notice,” the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development said.

“DPIRD will continue to work with NSW Police and SLS NSW to monitor the area and provide any technical advice and resources if required.”

Bull sharks, which can thrive in both freshwater and saltwater environments, are one of the world’s the most dangerous and aggressive shark species.

They favour shallow, coastal waters, but are known to travel far up rivers - areas that are popular with surfers and swimmers.