Nearly six months after a casual swim at Black's Beach turned into a fight to save his left foot, 62-year-old Richard Woulfe has walked back onto the same stretch of sand where a stingray strike almost took his limb. Lifesaving surgery, multiple follow-ups and a skin graft kept the foot attached, but Woulfe is still looking at months of physical therapy and lingering numbness. His return to the beach doubled as a milestone and a personal test, and he says he fully intends to get back in the ocean.
As reported by ABC 10News, Woulfe was visiting San Diego in July when he felt "a little bit of a tug" on the top of his left foot while wading about 20 feet off Black's Beach. Lifeguards rinsed the wound and used hot water for the sting, and he flew home to Texas thinking that was the end of it. Instead, he developed strep and staph infections that advanced to gangrene and necrotizing fasciitis, often called flesh-eating disease. Doctors rushed him into emergency surgery about 72 hours after the sting, then followed up with two more operations, including a skin graft in September. Woulfe told reporters he is walking again, has no pain aside from numbness and is facing another six to 12 months of rehab.
How A Stingray Wound Can Turn Dangerous
The Wilderness Medical Society notes that stingray venom itself does not cause infection, but the puncture wound, and any barb that stays inside, can open the door for marine bacteria that trigger severe secondary infections such as necrotizing soft-tissue disease. Marine pathogens linked to these cases include Vibrio species, Aeromonas and Shewanella, along with common skin bacteria. The society recommends on-scene care that includes hot-water immersion, very thorough irrigation and imaging to find any fragments that may have broken off. In delayed cases, clinicians are advised to consider broader antibiotic coverage for marine organisms, which can be critical to stopping rapid tissue loss, according to the Wilderness Medical Society.
Who Is Most At Risk And When To See A Doctor
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that wound infections from marine bacteria such as Vibrio vulnificus can progress quickly and are especially dangerous for people with liver disease, diabetes or weakened immune systems. The agency advises people with open cuts to avoid salt or brackish water altogether and to get prompt medical care if a wound turns red, swollen, painful or begins to discolor rapidly. For clinicians, the CDC recommends considering marine pathogens whenever a patient has a wound and a history of seawater exposure so that early surgical and antibiotic treatment can start without delay, consistent with CDC guidance.
When Woulfe returned to the exact spot at Black's Beach this week, he told reporters he is determined to stay connected to the water. "So nice to be walking outside. It feels amazing," he said. Asked if he would go back into the ocean, he did not hesitate: "Yes, most certainly." He recalled that the July sting and its complications left him just days away from a possible amputation, but surgeons were able to remove the infected tissue and save the foot. His careful steps back into the surf underscore both a striking recovery and the unpredictable danger that can follow a seemingly simple puncture wound in the ocean, as documented by ABC 10News.
Doctors say most stingray run-ins do not end this dramatically, and simple precautions can tip the odds even further. Shuffling your feet in shallow water, treating stings quickly with hot water and getting prompt medical evaluation for worsening pain or redness can sharply lower the risk of a severe infection. The Wilderness Medical Society credits quick recognition and aggressive early care with preventing amputations in cases like Woulfe's, and his recovery is a reminder that speed matters. People with chronic liver disease, diabetes or immune suppression are urged to be extra cautious around coastal waters, consistent with CDC guidance.
