Pro surfer survives shark bite, then goes to a bar right afterwards

Professional surfer Frank O'Rourke survived a scary shark attack Saturday at a Jacksonville, Florida, beach. 

“Shark comes out of the water and grabs onto my arm, right by my elbow. Kinda tugs a little bit and thrashes,” he told ABC News. “I guess it tasted me and was like, ‘Nope.'”

The 23-year-old was captured on video briefly struggling with the shark by his friend RJ Berger, an eyewitness at the scene. Berger told News4Jax the shark looked to be a 4-foot spinner or backtip shark. 

“It was kind of panic, like, ‘Did that just happen?'” Berger told the news outlet. “It kind of took him a couple seconds to gather himself and realize, like, ‘Wow, I just got bit by a shark.’ And then we all went into the beach.”

Significantly unharmed, O'Rourke opted to go to the beachside bar instead of the hospital. He bandaged his bite-mark wounds, without stitches. 

“He immediately went to a bar because he was like, ‘I got bit by a shark,’ and people were like, ‘I’ll buy you drinks!’ So he went and hung out at the pier,” Berger told News4Jax.

A Jacksonville Beach Pier spokesman said in a statement shark attacks are rare in that area. O'Rouke said getting back in the water won't be difficult for him even though he's grateful to have escaped the shark. 

“I’m very lucky that I still have an arm,” O'Rourke told The Florida Times Union. “You can see the jawline, like where the jawline is of the shark … There’s still blood on my surfboard.”

"You’re more likely to get struck by lightning than killed by a shark," he added. "I’m going to buy a lottery ticket!”

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