COLORADO SPRINGS - Exactly one month ago, a 16-year-old boy from Colorado Springs was on vacation with family when he became victim number two of seven people attacked by sharks along the North Carolina coast.
Tuesday, Hunter Treschl was recovering at home in Colorado Springs.
When the rain started falling at the Oak Island beach in North Carolina, Hunter says he was ready to leave. So, he dipped into waist-deep water to wash off the sand when shark came up and took off his left arm on June 14.
"Seeing a shark on my arm and then being on the beach, basically just skips ahead to that," Hunter said.
The Colorado Springs teen does not remember much from the attack. He didn't see the shark coming. He says he didn't really feel too much pain.
"I think I was pretty calm honestly, surprisingly," Hunter said.
He was calm but aware of what had just happened. He believes a bull shark, about 7-feet long, bit him.
"I knew even lying on the beach. I knew that my left arm was gone," Hunter said.
That's when his mother, Sarah Treschl, received an alarming voicemail.
"I was terrified," Sarah Treschl said. "Actually, I was here in Colorado when I received the phone call that Hunter had been bitten by a shark."
Sarah Treschl says she was grateful that her son was still alive. She immediately flew to North Carolina where she saw Hunter resting peacefully in his hospital bed with a smile.
"I just immediately went to his side and began rubbing his new arm, his amputated limb," Sarah Treschl said. "I think that was the beginning of the healing process."
It was the beginning of a physical and mental recovery which has Hunter focusing on the positives rather than self-pity.
"I mean, there's obviously times where it's like, 'why me? Why did this have to happen to me?'" Hunter said. "But, it passes."
Sarah Treschl says her son has always been mentally strong and has been around people who have suffered other tragedies.
"He has compassion and empathy for that suffering, and he realizes that if other people can get through it, he can get through it, too," Sarah Treschl said.
Over a three week span, seven people were attacked by sharks along the North Carolina coast. Hunter was the second victim just about an hour after the first one. He hopes one day to get back in the water again.
"I like the beach a lot, and if I get bit by a shark again, it's just destiny at that point," Hunter said laughing.
He says the odds of him getting bitten by a shark a second time are astronomical.
"I might as well go and buy a bunch of lottery tickets. I'm bound to win something," Hunter said.
He still has ways to go medically. Hunter says the worst thing right now is the "phantom pain" he experiences where his arm used to be. But, he says through acupuncture and other treatments, it's improving.
"It used to be like just horrible, horrible pain like all the skin on the bottom of my hand just like got torn off," Hunter said.
A family friend set up a GoFundMe campaignto help him with medical expenses and the cost of a prosthetic arm.
Hunter says he is thankful for all the support financially and spiritually.
"It's really nice to be able to go on there in the morning and see. A lot of these people write comments now that are super nice, positive comments like, 'Oh, you're doing so well; you can do this; you're such an inspiration.' It's great to read," Hunter said. "I never thought of myself as an inspiration, but I guess if I can help those people out by being inspirational, that's fine with me."
Next month, Hunter will enter his junior year at the Thomas MacLaren charter school. He is interested in pursuing a degree in engineering or computer science. He has no plans of letting his missing limb slow him down.
"The simple truth of it is, if I care about something, I'm going to find a way to do it with one hand," Hunter said. "I mean, it's more difficult, obviously, but there's enough willpower to get through whatever."
(© 2015 KUSA)
