# Shark Attacks



## Kauai Kid (Jun 20, 2015)

The great white is the most frequent shark attacker
52 unprovoked shark attacks in the US in 2014.  There were 20 elsewhere in the world and none were fatal.

Florida:  28 attacks
Hawaii:  7 attacks
South Carolina:  5 attacks
California and N Carolina:  4 attacks

65% were on surfers or other board sports
32% were on swimmers
3% were on snorklers

Info from Time Magazine


Sterling,


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## TUGBrian (Jun 20, 2015)

more people get struck by lightning every year than attacked by sharks....gotta keep things in perspective =)


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## MichaelColey (Jun 20, 2015)

And WAY more get killed in automobile accidents.


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## shagnut (Jun 21, 2015)

And 2 teenagers were attacked  within  2 hrs of each other in Oak Island , NC.  The boy from CO  had his entire arm amputated & the young girl had her arm removed below the elbow and also got bit in the leg.  This is crazy!!

shaggy


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## csxjohn (Jun 21, 2015)

shagnut said:


> And 2 teenagers were attacked  within  2 hrs of each other in Oak Island , NC.  The boy from CO  had his entire arm amputated & the young girl had her arm removed below the elbow and also got bit in the leg.  This is crazy!!
> 
> shaggy



In what way is this crazy?  People go into their environments, and into their feeding grounds and somehow it's the fault of the (insert any animal here).

We take chances in everything we do and have to weigh the risks against the pleasure of doing them. 


If you don't want to take the risk of cracking open an egg and finding a baby chicken, buy duck eggs.

If you don't want to risk a shark bite, swim in a pool.


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## CarolF (Jun 21, 2015)

Australia had 4 deaths last year and this year, 2 so far.
http://www.australiangeographic.com...015/02/shark-attacks-in-australia-a-timeline/

Recently, a pod of Killer Whales attacked and killed a Great White causing the sharks to stay away for weeks.  The local Cage Diving tourism businesses were very worried for quite a while.


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## Talent312 (Jun 21, 2015)

Can't you feel 'em circlin', honey? 
Can't you feel 'em swimmin' around?
You got fins to the left, fins to the right,
And you're the only bait in town. 
_-- Jimmy Buffett, "Fins"_





_-- Chevy Chase, as the SNL land shark_

More seriously, it may be safer to stay indoors, but is that any way to live?
Life is a risky business.  All you can do, is try to avoid doing something stupid.
.


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## Kauai Kid (Jun 22, 2015)

CarolF said:


> Australia had 4 deaths last year and this year, 2 so far.
> http://www.australiangeographic.com...015/02/shark-attacks-in-australia-a-timeline/
> 
> Recently, a pod of Killer Whales attacked and killed a Great White causing the sharks to stay away for weeks.  The local Cage Diving tourism businesses were very worried for quite a while.



Killer "Whales" are Dophins I believe.  So much for Flipper the friendly Dolphin.  I have a friend that lives on Vancouver Island and he has seen a Killer Whale take  on an elephant seal, 10,000#?? and shake it like a rag doll until dead.

Sterling


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## Beefnot (Jun 22, 2015)

csxjohn said:


> In what way is this crazy? People go into their environments, and into their feeding grounds and somehow it's the fault of the (insert any animal here).
> 
> We take chances in everything we do and have to weigh the risks against the pleasure of doing them.
> 
> ...


 
Well I imagine two severe shark attacks happening within 2 hours of each other is "crazy".  I don't know that I would conflate "crazy" with "somehow it's the fault of the (insert any animal here)".  

As for me, yeah yeah I know about all the odds of getting struck by lighting or dying in a car accident, but fear is often irrational, and my fear of sharks is acute enough that I am happily retired from snorkling or wading beyond about hip deep water.


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## TUGBrian (Jun 22, 2015)

youd be amazed at how many sharks swim well inside "hip deep" water on the beach!


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## tante (Jun 22, 2015)

TUGBrian said:


> youd be amazed at how many sharks swim well inside "hip deep" water on the beach!



Don't tell me that


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## moonstone (Jun 22, 2015)

We've been going in the Atlantic at St Augustine for nearly 40 years. We used to go in up to shoulder deep until DH & a buddy caught baby sharks (15inches) while surf casting off the beach many (+30) years ago. We figured if there were babies around then 'mom & dad' would be around too!  Now we just wade in no more than knee deep along the beach.

DH also caught a 13ft /500lb shark when we went deep sea fishing off the coast there over 30 years ago. We gave the carcass to the Alligator Farm & kept the jaws -they're in our livingroom!

~Diane


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## Free2Roam (Jun 22, 2015)

tante said:


> Don't tell me that


Right! I want to pretend like that comment never even happened...


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## FLDVCFamily (Jun 23, 2015)

TUGBrian said:


> youd be amazed at how many sharks swim well inside "hip deep" water on the beach!



Yup. We live on the barrier island off the Space Coast (where you hear of a lot of bites happening), and you can bet that none of us go in the ocean. Most of my friends don't either. Sit on the beach, swim in the pool is my motto. Bites in waist-deep water seem too common here.


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## csxjohn (Jun 23, 2015)

Friends of mine who own a couple homes in the shark bite capital of the world, New Smyrna Beach, were in N. Myrtle beach when the two attacks happened there.  Lots of news coverage about it down there.

They too never swim in the ocean.

We're going to Daytona Beach Shores July 4th and the little ones are looking forward to getting in the surf.  I may let them close enough to let the waves hit them but I will be high on a balcony with my binoculars watching the water closely.


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## VegasBella (Jun 23, 2015)

Well I won't let an irrational fear of sharks keep me out of the ocean.


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## dioxide45 (Jun 23, 2015)

VegasBella said:


> Well I won't let an irrational fear of sharks keep me out of the ocean.



Not sure I am afraid of sharks, just afraid of being bitten by one.

Obviously there are risks with anything. People mitigate those risks. Like lightning. I try to go inside where there is a thunderstorm. If I want to mitigate the risks of a shark bite, I don't go in the water. The changes of either happening are slim, but they are even slimmer if I mitigate the risks.


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## Talent312 (Jun 24, 2015)

I've been swimming off Florida beaches for nearly 60 years.
Not one close encounter with a shark... so far.
Of course, anecdotal experience counts doesn't count for much.
... Jus' saying it hasn't kept me out of the water.
.


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## VegasBella (Jun 24, 2015)

dioxide45 said:


> Not sure I am afraid of sharks, just afraid of being bitten by one.
> 
> 
> 
> Obviously there are risks with anything. People mitigate those risks. Like lightning. I try to go inside where there is a thunderstorm. If I want to mitigate the risks of a shark bite, I don't go in the water. The changes of either happening are slim, but they are even slimmer if I mitigate the risks.




Avoiding the water entirely (rather than just certain times of day, certain activities, certain weather conditions) due to fear of shark bites is more like avoiding the outdoors due to fear of lightening than going indoors during thunderstorms.


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## Beefnot (Jun 24, 2015)

VegasBella said:


> Avoiding the water entirely (rather than just certain times of day, certain activities, certain weather conditions) due to fear of shark bites is more like avoiding the outdoors due to fear of lightening than going indoors during thunderstorms.



No, the analogy would be not going to the beach.


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## csxjohn (Jun 24, 2015)

Irrational fear has no basis for the fear, like being afraid to step on a sidewalk crack for fear you'll break your mother's back.

There is evidence that swimming in the ocean could lead to a shark attack so I don't think avoiding it is irrational.


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## dioxide45 (Jun 24, 2015)

csxjohn said:


> Irrational fear has no basis for the fear, like being afraid to step on a sidewalk crack for fear you'll break your mother's back.
> 
> There is evidence that swimming in the ocean could lead to a shark attack so I don't think avoiding it is irrational.



Just like walking out in a thunderstorm could lead to being struck by lightning. There is no evidence of being able to be struck on a clear day.


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## artringwald (Jun 26, 2015)

*Forget the sharks, watch out for the cows.*

According to this Washington Post article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/06/16/chart-the-animals-that-are-most-likely-to-kill-you-this-summer/

You're 20 times more likely to get killed by a cow than by a shark.


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## Beefnot (Jun 26, 2015)

As a resident of southern California who does not live near cattle and rarely drives in areas where a cow could even be crossing the road while I am driving, I am definitely not more than 20 times more likely to be killed by a cow than a shark.


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## hjtug (Jun 26, 2015)

Aren't more of us killed by humans than any other animal?


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## artringwald (Jun 26, 2015)

hjtug said:


> Aren't more of us killed by humans than any other animal?



In 2013, drunk drivers killed over 10,000 people. They're the ones we should really be scared of.

http://www.madd.org/blog/2014/december/2013-drunk-driving-fatalities.html?referrer=https://www.google.com/


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## Beefnot (Jun 26, 2015)

Agoraphobia has its advantages.


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## dioxide45 (Jun 26, 2015)

Beefnot said:


> As a resident of southern California who does not live near cattle and rarely drives in areas where a cow could even be crossing the road while I am driving, I am definitely not more than 20 times more likely to be killed by a cow than a shark.



These kinds of statistics are silly. They are based on the population as a whole. What about those 58 killed by bees and wasps? What percentage had some kind of allergy to bee stings? How many were from a single sting vs a swarm. I am more worried about dying from a shark attack than from a bee sting.

Obviously a high percentage of those killed by cows work or live on farms. I don't plan to hike in the woods, so bears and elk are not a concern. I do visit the beach, so sharks a a concern and certainly not an irrational fear. Not saying I wouldn't swim in the ocean, we don't do it very often. I won't be looking over my shoulder every second worried about sharks. The chances are still slim. If I bought a lottery ticket, my chances of winning are better than a shark bite. But I don't play, so I actually have a better chance of being attacked by a shark!


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## Talent312 (Jun 26, 2015)

dioxide45 said:


> These kinds of statistics are silly...  Obviously a high percentage of those killed by cows work or live on farms. I don't plan to hike in the woods, so bears and elk are not a concern. I do visit the beach, so sharks are a concern and certainly not an irrational fear...



You've probably been caught out in the rain.
In coastal U.S. states, lightning strikes & kills more than 37 people each year.  The US averages 19 shark attacks each year and one shark-attack fatality every two years. -- _National Geographic._ 
.


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## csxjohn (Jun 27, 2015)

hjtug said:


> Aren't more of us killed by humans than any other animal?








Here you go..

http://collectivelyconscious.net/me...rld-it-is-responsible-for-millions-of-deaths/


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## Jim Bryan (Jun 28, 2015)

Grew up swimming and surfing in the Atlantic and Gulf. Don't much go into the water anymore.


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## shagnut (Jul 4, 2015)

Yes, I know we are swimming in "their" home.  When I said it was crazy I meant there are more attacks this year than ever before.  Statistically the likelihood of being bitten by a shark is nil to none, I'm just saying this year seems to be different and I'm an ocean lover.  shaggy


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## topmom101 (Aug 9, 2015)

The fact that so many of these attacks are happening in hip-high water is the most disturbing part.  Someone posted a video on Facebook recently showing a shark thrashing on a beach in water no deeper than 2 feet.  

I also read an article claiming the reason why so many sharks are coming closer to the shore is that they are forced to find food because the ocean is over-fished.

I typically spend several weeks in the Caribbean and love being in the ocean, whether floating on a raft for hours or just chilling/treading water, and although I still do it, I must admit, it's with some trepidation.


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## dioxide45 (Aug 9, 2015)

This was a rather frightening incident at a pro surf event in South Africa.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anhRxIQutZ8


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## slabeaume (Oct 6, 2015)

Some friends and I were playing around in the ocean by Deerfield Beach a couple weeks ago when a good sized shark swam right by us.  I wonder how many times that's happened when we didn't happen to see it?!


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## DaveNV (Oct 6, 2015)

slabeaume said:


> Some friends and I were playing around in the ocean by Deerfield Beach a couple weeks ago when a good sized shark swam right by us.  I wonder how many times that's happened when we didn't happen to see it?!




When I lived in San Diego I went in the ocean a lot.  My attitude and awareness changed when the evening news had a report of a shark sighting.  The announcer said, "If you've been swimming in the ocean here, and you've never seen a shark, rest assured:  At least one shark has seen YOU."

Yikes!! 

Dave


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