As Italian journalist Eleonora Boi, who, while six months pregnant, endured an equally traumatic ordeal. The first incident was when she was swimming in waist-deep water with her two small children. Without warning, a shark struck, sinking its teeth into her right thigh and sending her into fight-or-flight mode.
In the acute aftermath of the attack, Boi started to flag down help by shouting in Italian and sobbing. And her husband, Danilo Gallinari, then an NBA player in residence as an Atlanta Hawk, immediately flew to her side. We know from the testimony of eyewitnesses that Gallinari sprinted in the direction of Boi, visibly shaken as he attempted to help her.
They were helped by a good Samaritan, who lent assistance in the crazy scene. This was the heroic bystander who took care of Boi and Gallinari until medical treatment could arrive on the scene.
“As soon as everyone started screaming, I had my son with me. I ran towards my wife and my daughter,” – Danilo Gallinari
Emergency responders immediately transported Boi to a local hospital. There, medical professionals performed hours of test after test to ensure the safety of her unborn child. Once it was confirmed that the baby had not swallowed or absorbed the bullet, medical personnel shifted their focus to operating on Boi’s thigh.
“After they gave us confirmation that the kid was OK and nothing happened to him, then they started the surgery process,” – Danilo Gallinari
Boi has been recovering since, he confesses that the mental toll of what happened cannot be understated. She now makes routine visits to her doctor and will deliver her second child this November. Even with this, the emotional cost remains high.
“Oh, my God, I was saying, ‘I don’t want to die’ and ‘I want that my baby is safe,’” – Eleonora Boi
In her testimony, she said the moment she was bitten was painful and disorienting. At first, Boi assumed she had just come into contact with a jellyfish.
“I felt a strong pain, and my thigh was burning, but my idea was, ‘Maybe it’s a huge jellyfish.’ But in reality, it wasn’t a jellyfish,” – Eleonora Boi
Looking back on her experience, she said they will forever be grateful to the good Samaritan who helped them out while trapped in the twisty situation.
“She was an angel. Danilo was with me, and she helped so much. I would like to say thank you to this woman because I don’t know her name, and I just want to say thank you to her because she helped a lot,” – Eleonora Boi
