Flu, asteroids pose far greater risk than sharks

BOSTON (AP) - The odds of being killed by a shark are one in 3.7 million. You’re much more in danger of succumbing to the flu (a one in 63 chance); a car accident (one in 90); a fall (one in 218); a lightning strike (one in 960,000); or even an asteroid (one in 1.6 million), according to the National Aquarium in Baltimore. University of Florida shark experts say you’re 290 times more likely to die in a boating accident than to suffer a fatal shark attack, and 132 times more likely to drown at the beach. Surfers tend to suffer the most attacks. Statistically, experts say, you’re more likely to be killed by an asteroid than by a shark. Last year, nearly six in 10 US attacks involved someone engaging in a board sport. Experts say that’s probably because surfers spend a lot of time in the “surf zone” where waves are breaking — an area sharks also tend to frequent. They urge bathers and others to avoid places where seals, a favorite prey for white sharks, congregate.