Reality star opens up about witnessing Bethany Hamilton shark attack

Bethany Hamilton’s 2003 shark attack rocked the world of competitive surfing — and the lives of the people who witnessed it.

Hamilton’s friend and fellow pro surfer Alana Blanchard was 12 when the attack occurred near Tunnels Beach in Kauai, Hawaii. Blanchard opened up about how the gruesome event impacted her during the Wednesday, Jan. 22, episode of the FOX reality series “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test.”

“It was just a really traumatic experience for me,” Blanchard said, breaking down in tears when the ex-Special Forces operatives who lead the show noted that she must have been “petrified.”

Blanchard shared that one of the reasons she signed on to “Special Forces,” which puts celebrity contestants through a grueling training designed to replicate an actual United States Special Forces selection course, was to learn to keep calm in situations like Hamilton’s attack.

“My dad saved [Hamilton’s] life. He handled it so well. And now that I’m at my age, and I have kids, I always think back to that time,” the athlete said. “My reason [for being here] was I want to react [well] in those kinds of situations.”

Blanchard recalled the surreal moment she realized that Hamilton had been bit.

“She’s laying on her board, a wave went down, and when it came up, her arm was gone, blood’s everywhere,” she told Directing Staff (DS) instructors. “[Her arm] was definitely, like, shredded, and she was just gushing blood the whole time.”

Blanchard further unpacked the incident during a confessional, telling cameras that she began throwing up once she and her dad got Hamilton back to the beach.

“When something happens like that, it doesn’t seem real. In the moment, I definitely didn’t react [well]. I was freaking out,” she said. “My dad said from that day, I was a changed girl. Like, I never was the same. I’m sure there’s some PTSD in there, for sure.”

A tiger shark bit off Hamilton’s left arm just below the shoulder during the attack. By the time she arrived at the hospital, she had lost 60 percent of her blood. But the teenager survived the grisly attack and returned to surfing one month later.

Hamilton’s harrowing experience and inspiring comeback were documented in her 2004 autobiography, “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board,” which was later adapted into a 2011 film starring AnnaSophia Robb. Photos of Blanchard and Hamilton appear in the book.

Hamilton shared an homage to her and Blanchard’s friendship via YouTube in May 2019. The video features old clips of the pair together, including footage of Blanchard addressing the shark attack.

“When the attack first happened, I was so devastated. I thought I lost my surf buddy,” she said.

Both women are still surfing professionally and they’re both mothers as well. Blanchard shares sons Banks, 7, and Koda, 3, with husband Jack Freestone, while Hamilton shares sons Tobias, 9, Wesley, 6, Micah, 3, and daughter Alaya, 18 months, with husband Adam Dirks.

Blanchard watched Wednesday’s emotional episode of “Special Forces” with Koda and her husband.

“Watching mama cry on TV. #Special Forcesfox,” she captioned an Instagram Story photo of Dirks and their younger son.

“Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test” airs on FOX Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EST.