Shark News:
Great White Shark Attacks Triple During Last Four Years
Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 13 December 2004: - - From 1926 to 1999, 108 shark attacks were reported from the Pacific Coast of North America according to the book "Shark Attacks of the Twentieth Century." The Great White shark, Carcharodon carcharias, was implicated in 94 (87%) of the attacks; an average of slightly more than one attack per year. What is alarming is that since 2000, there have been 16 shark attacks off the Pacific Coast, more than triple the Twentieth Century average, and all involved the Great White shark.
The most recent victim was Brian Kang, 38, of Arcata, California. On November 11, 2004 at 1:30 PM, he broke a record that had stood for 30 years. As the ninth person attacked by a Great White shark off the Pacific Coast this year, he made 2004 the most active year ever recorded for Great White shark attacks along this coast, or anywhere in the world.
Kang was the fifty-fifth surfer attacked by a Great White shark off the Pacific Coast since 1972. He was surfing with Jennifer Savage at 'Bunkers,’ a well-known surfing beach off the North Jetty at Humboldt Bay in Northern California. Without warning a Great White shark slammed into his surfboard and threw him into the water. Witnesses watched in horror as the huge shark, estimated to be 18 feet in length, clamped down on Kang’s legs. Kang fought back, striking the shark on the head with his fist. Within a few seconds the shark released its grip and Kang rode his board to the beach. Kang is the 124th person to be attacked by a shark off the Pacific Coast since 1926, with 110 of the attacks (89%) attributable to the Great White shark.
Distribution of the 108 Twentieth Century attacks is; 93 in California, 14 in Oregon, and 1 in Washington. There were 8 fatalities (7%), all from California. The most active months for Great White shark attacks were August through October, with more than 60% of the attacks from a ‘recurring location.’ Divers were the most numerous victims, with surfers a close second.
Since the year 2000 there have been 14 shark attacks reported from California, which includes 2 fatalities (13%), and 2 attacks from Oregon. Surfers accounted for 14 (88%) of the 16 attacks. In 2004, 6 of the 9 shark attacks reported (67%) were from a ‘recurring location’ and also occurred during the three month period of August to October. It is particularly distrubing that the first authenticated attack by a juvenile Great White shark (less than 4 feet in length) reported from any location world wide occurred at San Clemente, California in August. The number of adult and juvenile Great White sharks reported from the Pacific Coast this year suggests a possible increase in their population. In response to these compelling statistics, the Shark Research Committee will embark on an archival satellite tagging program in early spring 2005 to gather data on juvenile and adult Great White sharks in Southern California waters.
More information concerning the book "Shark Attacks of the Twentieth Century," published by Scientia Publishing and the Shark Attack Files of the Shark Research Committee, can be found at the website: http://www.sharkresearchcommittee.com
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