Tatyana Koltunyuk.Photo:Darya Koltunyuk/GoFundMe
Darya Koltunyuk/GoFundMe
A woman who was involved in an“extremely rare” shark attackat a New York City beach earlier this month faces a years-long road to recovery, according to her family.
“Her medical team has predicted that recovery will take several years of intense physical therapy and close medical monitoring, during which time she will have significantly limited mobility,” her family said. “Though the full impact of her injury is not yet known, it has left her with a permanent disability.” Additional information about her disability was not shared.
She was transported to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center “in serious but stable condition," the parks department said.
On aGoFundMe pageset up for Koltunyuk, her daughter, Dasha Koltunyuk, wrote that they “can’t yet anticipate everything she will need because the extent of her injuries is unknown.”
“She is still in the hospital and will be for at least several more weeks, and possibly more," her daughter added.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Koltunyuk, who emigrated to the United States from Ukraine in 1996, “was eagerly anticipating her retirement” so she could take a break “for the first time in her life,” according to the family’s statement.
The “fiercely intelligent and passionate” woman has “worked tirelessly” as a marine engineer to support her family over the years, especially after her husband died of a heart attack just weeks after they arrived in the U.S, they wrote.
“She talked about swimming in the ocean every day, walking around the city with a new puppy, and traveling with her daughter and son-in-law,” the family added.
Darya and her husband will do all they can “to make her retirement as comfortable and enjoyable as we possibly can,” but know that “the road ahead will be extremely challenging” for everyone.
“Our mother is an empathetic, thoughtful, and deeply proud woman who would never ask for anything, always putting others before herself,” the family wrote. “So we are asking for help on her behalf.”
As of Friday, more than $43,000 has been raised via GoFundMe to support Tatyana and her family.
source: people.com
