Man who survived shark attack returned home to a 'fin-tastic' surprise from his neighbors

A man who needed 26 stitches in his leg after being bitten by a shark in the western Bahamas came home to a 'fin-tastic' surprise.

A dream anniversary getaway became a fight for survival, after John Schweizer was bitten by a shark while celebrating 40 years of marriage with his wife in the Bahamas.

Disaster struck when Schweizer's son spotted a large shadow beneath the water, as the family snorkelled with Caribbean reef sharks - an excursion they had hoped would be the highlight of their vacation.

Speaking with NBC Connecticut, he said: "It was so fast, so immediate that you knew it happened. No doubt about it."

Before the attack unfolded, Schweizer described the water as 'beautifully clear', but as the shark, estimated to be between 5 and 7 feet long, approached him, he knew he had been bitten.

But Schweizer could never have predicted the themed surprise that was waiting for him when he landed home.

Schweizer received emergency treatment in Miami, and was able to walk the next day. (NBC Connecticut)

"That’s my neighborhood, and they’re wonderful people," he said, after the community welcomed him home wearing shark costumes.

How bad was the shark bite?

"We used many, many towels and torniquets to hold and keep the blood at bay," he recalled.

The man, from Niantic, Connecticut, was rushed back to a cruise ship where he received emergency treatment, until he could be transported to a hospital in Miami.

"The ship had an emergency room doctor on there and put in 26 stitches and four in my hand."

The couple were celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary when disaster struck. (NBC Connecticut)

He was able to return home just a day later thanks to his remarkable recovery and ability to walk.

Not his first experience with sharks

It surprisingly wasn't Schweizer's first encounter with sharks, being an avid fisher.

He added: "You catch them, and you don’t want to go near them. They don’t bite, but there’s a lot of sharks that are being caught by Millstone [Nuclear Power Plant] and they’re here."

How common are shark attacks?

Caribbean reef shark attacks are extremely uncommon, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History.

In fact, the museum has documented just four cases dating back to the 1500s.

He made a swift recovery. (NBC Connecticut)

And on a global scale, there are typically around 70–100 unprovoked shark bites reported each year, as per the International Shark Attack File (ISAF).

Of those, between 5-10 are fatal, although the number varies from year to year.

The vast majority of shark species pose little or no threat to humans, and most sharks avoid people altogether.

But as for whether Schweizer would take his chances again, he admitted: "No. No. Not at all and I won’t do it again."