PICTURED: British schoolboy, eight, who was bitten by three sharks on family Caribbean holiday after tourists ‘started chucking their lunch into the water’
- Finley Downer, eight, was attacked by three nurse sharks in horrific ‘Jaws attack’
- He was dragged to safety by his sister, 12, during excursion to Compass Cay
- Finley’s father, Michael, 44, is furious the tour guides told him sharks were safe
- However tour operator said the family went, without a guide, into a lagoon
A British schoolboy was savaged by three sharks while he was on a family holiday in the Caribbean after tourists ‘started chucking their lunch into the water’.
Finley Downer, eight, was in The Bahamas with his family last week on an excursion to the protected harbour Compass Cay when the horrific attack happened.
The terrified youngster had to be dragged to safety by his 12-year-old sister during the £200 per person trip after at least three nurse sharks suddenly bit both of the boy’s legs.
Finley’s father, Michael, 44, had booked the luxurious summer holiday with his three children, Finley, Lily, nine, and Emily, 12, alongside the five-island excursion that also included guided swimming with pigs.
Mr Downer said his children saw a shiver of sharks swimming in a nearby lagoon later in the trip next to a crowd of holidaymakers and went over – unaware they were feeding on scraps being thrown to them.
Finley’s mother Kerry, 40, who is divorced from Mr Downer, told MailOnline: ‘When my ex husband Michael rang me to say there has been an accident but not to panic it broke my heart that I couldn’t be there with him.
‘I was thousands of miles away, I wasn’t on holiday with them. If it was Europe I would have gone out.
‘I kept FaceTiming Fin and he was saying “Mummy, I’m scared” when he was going into surgery. It was heart breaking.’
Finley Downer, eight, was in The Bahamas with his family last week on an excursion to the protected harbour Compass Cay when the horrific attack happened.
The terrified youngster had to be dragged to safety by his 12-year-old sister during the £200 per person trip after at least three nurse sharks suddenly bit both of the boy’s legs
Kerry, who has 15-month-old twin daughters with her new partner, added: ‘It wasn’t Fin’s fault. He was encouraged to go in the water as part of the tour, he didn’t know not to.
‘But people started chucking their lunch in and the sharks attacked him. It happened to be him. He was only in the water for a couple of minutes. It was just a freak accident.’
Mrs Downer, from Mawsley Northampton, said: ‘I couldn’t wait to see him and the moment he was allowed to fly back he came home. He lives mainly with me but stays with his two sisters at his dad’s.
‘I gave him a big hug and he’s now back to his normal cheeky self and is trying to walk.
‘He’s my only boy, he’s only eight years old bless him.
‘Michael would never put him in danger, he is an amazing dad and he coped very well with the ordeal.’
She told how cruel trolls have targeted her family on social media, causing more distress.
She said: ‘They are saying what bad parenting and that we are the worst parents in the world allowing the attack to happen. I wasn’t even there. And they are dating the kids should be taking away from us. It is very upsetting.
‘Trolls shouldn’t be allowed to write this.’
Finley, his dad and sisters had been due to jet off on a second summer holiday to the Dominican Republic with friends at the weekend but will have to cancel it.
Mr Downer explained: ‘Finley’s up for it, he wants to go, he’s so resilient but it’s too much of a risk with his stitches.
‘He needs to heal properly before going abroad again.’
The youngster was luckily lifted out of the water by his quick-thinking sister Lily and was taken to the nearest hospital on a golf buggy.
Sales manager Mr Downer, is now back home with his family in Kettering, Northamptonshire after also paying for a £2,000 flight to take Finley to Nassau for a three-hour operation.
Finley’s father, Michael, 44, (pictured) had booked the luxurious summer holiday with his three children, Finley, Lily, nine, and Emily, 12, alongside the five-island excursion that also included guided swimming with pigs
Finley had to be dragged to safety by his 12-year-old sister during the £200 per person excursion after at least three nurse sharks, unprovoked, suddenly bit both of the boy’s legs
He has been left furious that the tour guides told him the sharks were safe despite Finley now having to use a wheelchair as his leg wounds recover.
However, the operator Exuma Escapes, said the family went, without a guide, into a lagoon that is not used on its tour.
Their website says that the nurse sharks at Compass Cay ‘were initially brought as pets, however, after gaining popularity through tourism, the Compass Cay Marina has turned the environment into a sanctuary.’
It added: ‘The sharks are smooth to the touch as they swim up and rub against your legs. They have a brown tone and usually don’t mind closeness to other sharks and humans.’
