DESPITE TWO DEATHS IN ONE YEAR, FATALITIES REMAIN LOW, SAY SHARK EXPERTS

The fatal shark incident in Plettenberg Bay on 25 September has spurred a debate on how people can be better protected from sharks and if there is a reason for two fatalities linked to shark bites this year in the area.

The local Bitou Municipality and National Sea Rescue Institute said two fatalities in a year was “very unusual when compared with previous years”, which is true considering the last fatality from a shark bite in Plettenberg Bay was in 2011. The annual average of unprovoked fatalities from shark attacks is only five worldwide, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File.

“When these things happen, people try to find a specific reason to point fingers at,” said Dr Enrico Gennari, a marine ecologist and white shark specialist at the Oceans Research Institute in Mossel Bay. “I think there is less chance of getting bitten by a white shark now than 10 years ago,” he said, explaining that the number of white sharks in SA is most likely declining.

Sarah Warries, CEO of Shark Spotters, said it’s important to understand that shark attacks are very rare.

“And while they are very rare, they are incredibly high-impact events. So there’s always this sort of massive uproar and very emotional traumatic response, which is completely understandable, but that at the end of the day they do happen very rarely.”

The pioneering programme Shark Spotters posts lookouts at busy beaches. It started in Cape Town in 2004 after a spate of bites and sightings. Photo: sharkspotters.org.za