Shark kills Frenchman on Reunion Island

reunion1SAINT-DENIS, France, May 08. 2013,  AFP –

A French honeymooner has been attacked and killed by a shark while surfing not far from the beach on the French Indian Ocean island of Reunion, authorities say.

The 36-year-old was in the sea off the popular beach of Brisants de Saint-Gilles when a shark charged at him twice, prompting a nearby swimmer to raise the alert when he saw blood on the water, the local prefecture said.

Lifeguards jumped in the water to fetch the victim, who had lost a lot of blood and was in cardiac and respiratory arrest. They brought him back to the beach but were unable to revive him.

The shark had bitten the surfer on the arm and on the thigh. His wife was on the beach when the attack happened, and is being treated for shock, authorities said.

The deadly shark attack was the first this year on the island, where three people were killed by sharks in the past two years.

Sharks are not man-eaters, but sometimes mistake humans for their natural prey, like seals or tortoises, and at other times hurt surfers as they “mouth” them out of curiosity, experts say.

Last year, 78 shark attacks were reported around the world, of which eight were fatal.

Source: news.com.au

 

3 Comments

  1. Surprise, Surprise, Surprise – A tourist gets killed by shark around Reunion. At SAS we have been in communication with the surfing community around Reunion the locals just don’t use the ocean anymore catching a wave in not worth the risk of being attacked. 
    All your stupid ISAF relative-risk comparisons or statistics do not apply here. 
    Al

  2. Angel

    Very unfortunate interaction.
    This has been a hot spot for fatal shark interactions for a while.
    There is something wrong around the islands which was discussed in detail in anther post from last year. Locals have much more detailed insider information on how human practices effected the reef , over fishing, and aqua farming close to shore effects the shark behavior.
    Historically there were always big and potentially dangerous sharks around the islands for centuries but the interactions were relatively low and the encounters were not reported properly. But now, with all the advanced technologies the world is aware of the problem but the potential responsible authorities does not take any action other than killing a few sharks. We all agreed in past discussions here on SYM that this is not a valid solution and it will not work. Whatever is causing the change in shark behavior has to be changed to its original state to prevent these interactions. Meaning some people will loose some income but people will be safer. the healthy reefs has to be established back again, fish farms has to be closed or moved outside the coastal waters, pollution of immediate waters has to be stopped etc.
    This is a very clear example of an island ecosystem ruined by humans and other humans pay the penalty for their greed and ignorance.
    God bless the victim. Condolences to the family, wife and friends.      

    • Kathy C

      Angel, your comments were right on point. No doubt whatever IS causing the change in shark behavior, man is behind it (whether it be due to contaminants in the water, etc.).

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