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The ocean is generally a safe place to play, but every once in a while a story comes out that reminds us that there is more in the sea than plastic and mermaids.
A 38-year-old man who was kite surfing about 500 yards off the Florida coast was killed after being attacked by a mob of what scientists first speculated to be juvenile great white sharks. There is no telling how many sharks actually contributed to the attack, but earlier local television station WPTV had captured frightening video footage of hundreds of dorsal fins just off the coast – enough that authorities considered closing local beaches.
But the real story here is that of fearless lifeguard Daniel Lund, who noticed the victim flailing in the water then–get this–swam out into the middle of the circling great white sharks, put the bleeding man onto a rescue board, then paddled him back to the beach.
But the rescue effort, though heroic, was in vain. The man’s injuries were too great and he died soon after at Martin Memorial Medical Center.
Editor’s update: Experts have since ruled out the possibility of the sharks being great whites.
[Via: The Goat, via Adventure Life]
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The gnarliest obit ever: he was “killed after being attacked by a mob of juvenile great white sharks.”
They weren’t “juvenile great whites”, oh sensationalistic hype reporters, they were bull sharks.
The guy had 2 bites, one of which caused his femoral artery to bleed out. check your sources.
Floridian is correct. This post originally said that the kite surfer was attacked by great whites. Scientists first theorized that it had been. Experts have since ruled out the possibility of great whites being involved.
Here is an article in the Christian Science Monitor about it:
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0205/Experts-rule-out-great-white-in-Florida-shark-attack
Thanks for the catch, floridian. The post has been updated.