Yesterday, a great white shark attacked and killed a man in New Zealand, an incident deemed rare and prompting a police response that involved gunfire.
After receiving reports of a fatal bite at Muriwai beach, which is situated approximately 40 kilometers northwest of Auckland along the North Island’s rugged west coast, known for its tumultuous surf, police disclosed they had shot at the shark.
Local media cited rescue crews as stating that the shark, referred to as a “white pointer,” commonly known as a great white, was around 4 meters in length. Additionally, witnesses mentioned that a rescue helicopter also discharged shots at the shark.
“We saw the shark fin, and then suddenly, boom, the attack occurred. There was blood everywhere on the water,” stated eye witness Pio Mosie, as reported by a local news outlet.
“They fired six or seven shots at the shark, with three rounds coming from the police helicopter and several more from lifeguards. I’m unsure if they managed to kill the shark,” he remarked.
The leader of the local volunteer lifeguard service confirmed that they had spotted “one or two” sharks in the area, although none were seen after the man’s body was retrieved from the water.
In New Zealand, shark attacks are infrequent, and partaking in water sports and beach vacations is a treasured summer tradition. Over 60 species of sharks are documented to inhabit the waters around the country.
Since records began around 1837, there have been 14 fatal shark attacks, as per the country’s Department of Conservation, which also noted that the average number of non-fatal shark encounters is around two each year.
The most recent attack that resulted in a death occurred in 2009 when a kayaker was attacked by a great white shark in the nearby Coromandel Peninsula, although there has been some debate regarding whether the victim drowned prior to the attack.
According to the International Shark Attack File, last year saw 11 reported shark fatalities, which included three in Australia and South Africa, marking a near tripling of the average annual fatality count from 2001 to 2010.
