First public statement

Leah Stewart, the mother attacked by a shark at Coogee Beach in June, has spoken publicly for the first time since the incident, saying she has been given a "second chance at life" and thanking the thousands of people who supported her recovery.

In a statement posted to a fundraising page on Sunday, the 35-year-old schoolteacher wrote that the past few months had been "incredibly difficult," but that she had progressed enough to "build some independence" and could "finally see some light after all of this."

"I want you to know that I feel like I've been given a second chance at life, and I'm not going to waste it," she wrote.

Stewart's family had previously provided updates on her condition on the fundraising site. Her brother, Josh Stewart, who set up the page, said in a June update that she had stabilised and was no longer in critical condition, though further surgery and extensive rehabilitation remained ahead.

The attack and recovery

On the morning of June 13, Stewart was swimming between the flags and close to shore at Coogee Beach when she was attacked by a white shark, described by some reports as a suspected 3.5-metre great white. She was taken to St Vincent's Hospital in critical condition, having been bitten on her leg and arms and suffering multiple fractures and significant blood loss.

Stewart was placed in an induced coma and underwent several surgeries, including the amputation of one of her arms. According to reports, she spent nearly two weeks in the coma and was briefly woken about 11 days after the attack, when her first words to her husband and mother were "I love you." Her first thoughts, she has said, were for her 18-month-old daughter, August.

In an emotional interview with the Nine Network's 60 Minutes, scheduled to air this Sunday, Stewart recounted the attack in vivid detail.

"It was holding on to my leg. All I was thinking of was August and I thought, she's not going to have a mum," she said. Describing the shark's face, she said: "Its face was horrific. I will never forget. It was a monster."

The interview will also include an audio recording of the Triple Zero call made from the shore that day, in which a woman tells the operator: "Hi, we've got a shark attack at Coogee Beach. There's a lot of blood in the water."

Fundraiser closes

The online fundraiser, set up shortly after the attack to cover Stewart's rehabilitation, prosthetics, and ongoing medical treatment, has raised more than $500,000 — with some reports putting the figure above $558,000. In her statement, Stewart said it was time to "turn off donations."

"What you've offered has given us enough to recover, to stay in our home, and to give us options for further medical treatment down the road," she wrote.

She said the support she had received from around the world had "inspired me to get better, not bitter," and that her recovery had been "remarkable."

"I still have a long way to go, but my recovery has been remarkable, and a huge part of that is because of the absolute army of love, support, prayers and encouragement surrounding my family and I from all over the world," she wrote.

Broader context

Stewart's attack is one of several high-profile shark incidents in New South Wales this year. In January, 12-year-old Nico Antic died in hospital after being attacked at Vaucluse, and musician Andre de Ruyter lost his leg after being bitten by a suspected bull shark at Manly Beach.

The attack on Stewart has also prompted debate over beach safety, with NSW Premier Chris Minns announcing boosted funding for shark surveillance. The drone surveillance program has been expanded to cover 72 beaches along the NSW coast from dawn to dusk.