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The 65-year-old Queens woman who narrowly survived a shark attack at Rockaway Beach earlier this month underwent five surgeries in eight days — and now has a “permanent disability,” her family said Thursday.
Tatyana Koltunyuk — who lost a large piece of her left leg above the knee — will likely need more surgeries along with years of physical therapy, her daughter and son-in-law said.
“[She] has undergone 5 surgeries in the first 8 days since the attack, and will require more. Her medical team has predicted that recovery will take several years of intense physical therapy and close medical monitoring, during which time she will have significantly limited mobility,” her family said in a statement.
“Though the full impact of her injury is not yet known, it has left her with a permanent disability.”
Koltunyuk, a former marine engineer originally from Ukraine, was swimming alone near Beach 59th Street at around 6 p.m. on Aug. 7 when the apex predator chomped down on her.
Tatyana Koltunyuk has had five surgeries in eight days. GoFundMe
Koltunyuk reportedly lost 20 pounds of flesh in the attack. NY Post
Her family asked for help raising money for Koltunyuk’s ongoing recovery via a GoFundMe page. NY PostLifeguards spotted her screaming, and she was believed to have lost “approximately 20 pounds of flesh” from the bite, sources said later. She was rushed to Jamaica Hospital.
In an update on her condition Thursday, her family asked for help raising money for Koltunyuk’s ongoing recovery via a GoFundMe page.
“Our mother is an empathetic, thoughtful, and deeply proud woman who would never ask for anything, always putting others before herself. So we are asking for help on her behalf,” they wrote.
“She is 65 years old and was eagerly anticipating her retirement, when she could — for the first time in her life — take a break. She talked about swimming in the ocean every day, walking around the city with a new puppy, and traveling with her daughter and son-in-law.”
The historic attack was believed to be the first on the popular waterfront since 1953.
Teeth marks indicated Koltunyuk, of Astoria, may have been bitten by a bull or thresher shark though a great white couldn’t be ruled out, a source familiar with the incident said at the time.
