Shark attack survivor Leah Stewart has spoken of feeling “disconnected” from the ordeal after Australian listeners called for three Fox FM presenters to be sacked for questioning her account of the mauling.
Ms Stewart, 35, lost part of her left arm when she was attacked by a great white while swimming between the flags at Coogee Beach in Sydney on June 13. She later described fighting back as the shark dragged her underwater, saying she was thinking of her one-year-old daughter, August.
Her first television interviews, including an appearance on Good Morning Britain and a detailed account on Nine’s 60 Minutes, prompted online trolls to question how calmly she appeared to recount the incident.
The backlash intensified after Brendan Fevola, Nick Cody and stand-in presenter Kate Langbroek discussed her interview on Fox FM’s breakfast programme. Fevola suggested Ms Stewart had embellished parts of her story, saying she had put “a lot of mayo on” the details.
He also said he had watched the interview with his wife and initially believed Ms Stewart was lying because he did not think she would have had time to consider which arm to use when punching the shark.
Langbroek questioned the account while also cautioning that they could not know how a person would react in such circumstances. The presenters compared Ms Stewart’s recollection with professional surfer Mick Fanning’s account of fighting off a shark, in which he said he had acted instinctively.
Leah Stewart says she is still processing the attack
In her first public message since the radio comments, posted on Instagram on Wednesday night, Ms Stewart said her calm appearance on television did not mean she had escaped the psychological impact of the attack.
“Watching my Good Morning Britain interview, you may have noticed how calm I seemed describing the attack, the host even said it looked like I had no PTSD,” she wrote.
“Truthfully, I still feel disconnected from it, almost like it happened in a dream. I think that’s my mind protecting me while I begin processing it.”
She added: “I’m very early in that process, but wanted to give a snapshot of where I’m at. Truthfully I’m a bit scared to move past this current state of mind.”
During her interview with 60 Minutes, Ms Stewart recalled coming face-to-face with the shark and deciding to use her left arm because it was the limb she was more willing to lose.
“She’s not going to have a mum. She’s going to grow up without a mum,” she remembered thinking about August as the attack unfolded.
She said she then twisted around and punched the shark repeatedly, describing the experience as “like fighting a dinosaur” and “like punching a brick wall”.
“You are not taking me away from my daughter,” she recalled shouting at the animal.
Ms Stewart also described feeling as though she was leaving her body before seeing a vision of her daughter and forcing herself to keep fighting.
“I said ‘I can’t die right now, I can’t.’ I know it sounds strange, but I sort of willed myself back,” she said.
She was rescued by off-duty volunteer lifeguard Charlie Verco, who helped her cling to his paddleboard before bringing her towards the beach. An off-duty doctor and others helped apply tourniquets and perform CPR as emergency services arrived.
Ms Stewart was taken to St Vincent’s Hospital in a critical condition, placed in a medically induced coma and underwent several operations, including the amputation of her left arm. More than 550,000 Australian dollars has since been raised to support her recovery and family.
Listeners accused the Fox FM presenters of showing “poor form” and demanded an apology, with some calling for them to lose their jobs.
One listener wrote: “Let’s add to her trauma and grief by undermining the magnitude of her experience.”
Another described Ms Stewart as a survivor with “a hard lifelong road ahead” and urged the station to “fire them pronto”.
Fevola has acknowledged that he is frightened of sharks, saying he would probably have suffered a heart attack in the same situation. The presenters’ comments have nevertheless drawn widespread criticism as Ms Stewart continues to recover from the attack.
