8-year-old boy injured by shark off Key Largo, airlifted to Miami

An 8 year old boy was seriously injured by a shark while snorkeling with his family off Key Largo on Monday afternoon and was airlifted to a Miami trauma center, authorities and the boy's family said. The attack occurred around 3:24 to 3:30 p.m. at Horseshoe Reef, roughly four miles offshore, according to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office and emergency dispatch audio.

Monroe County deputies said the shark bit the child above the knee, causing heavy bleeding. The boy's father flagged down a nearby dive vessel operated by Horizon Divers, whose crew applied two tourniquets and other first aid before escorting the family back to Garden Cove Marina, dispatch audio released by local outlets indicates. Key Largo Fire Department personnel boarded the vessel when it arrived and the boy was flown by the Trauma Star helicopter to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center in Miami, where he underwent surgery Monday night, Sheriff Rick Ramsay told the Miami Herald. Officials have not released further medical details.

The child's family identified him as Richard Burrows and said the shark was a blacktip, though some reports used an alternative spelling of the surname. In a written...