Bahamas: Visitor bitten by shark while scuba diving

[DandyDon]

Sounds like a law suit is in order.

In Bahamian courts?! US visitors diving with chummed sharks is nothing new there. The glass bottom boat getting close to the dive flag and chumming was reckless but hard to proven negligence. And what if you spent all that money and won? What would you win? A Bahamian judgement on a local operator of unknown net value.

When you leave the US, you leave the US - protect yourself!

 

[drrich2]

When you leave the US, you leave the US - protect yourself!

Yes, but how do you protect yourself from someone showing up up-top while you're down reef-exploring, dropping chum you don't know about, and drawing sharks in?

If the divers had known the waters were being chummed overhead during what wasn't intended to be a shark dive, I imagine they would've gotten out of the water!

Richard.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

chumming sharks should be outlawed.....there; as it is in Florida....

 

[DandyDon]

Yes, but how do you protect yourself from someone showing up up-top while you're down reef-exploring, dropping chum you don't know about, and drawing sharks in?

If the divers had known the waters were being chummed overhead during what wasn't intended to be a shark dive, I imagine they would've gotten out of the water!

Richard.

I just don't dive where chumming is knowingly practiced.

 

[BKP]

I just don't dive where chumming is knowingly practiced.

Unfortunately, it wasn't known by the divers...
It seems the recent Bahamian incidents I've heard of (including this, the lawyer last year, Groh, even Jim Abernathy's recent incident), all were associated with chum dives. Does this not register with the shark-feeders?

 

[bleeb]

Yes, but how do you protect yourself from someone showing up up-top while you're down reef-exploring, dropping chum you don't know about, and drawing sharks in?

I'm thinking one possible way might be to do more research on the destination. The search needs to be more than 'what does this dive operator do'. It would have to be the much more vague 'what else goes on around there'. Somewhat not unlike looking up whether any governments have cautions when travelling in the area. If it turns out non-dive boats regularly dump stuff overboard (or other potentially hazardous things) it would be a signal to be extra cautious, or to go elsewhere. Not very definitive, I realize.

 

[Tricia]

This calls to mind the recent discussion on this board about the spearing of lionfish and feeding them to sharks.

A few weeks ago, I dove at San Salvador (the outer islands of the Bahamas). I had been there 12 months previously and this time, noticed a HUGE difference in the number of sharks around the divers. Normally, you might see reef sharks and hammerheads on 1 or 2 dives there. But on this trip, you saw sharks (particularly the reef sharks) on every single dive.

We were trying to figure out why and somebody explained that the government was paying people to spear the lionfish and so they were filleting them underwater and feeding the meat to the sharks. Great! So now the sharks are beginning to associate divers with food!

This is a little bit like those idiots who feed bears in wild parks. I fear it will not end well.

Just my 2 cents..

Trish

 

[ajduplessis]

chumming sharks should be outlawed.....there; as it is in Florida....

Agreed, however there will always be some idiots asking for hard proof or studies. Chumming is looking for trouble!!!!!!

 

[Ayisha]

Just in the last couple of years, we have 2 shark bites on Jim Abernathy's charters; 5 shark bites in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt; one in South Africa and this last one again in the Bahamas ALL associated with shark baiting or feeding. And those are just the one ones I can think of off the top of my head. I wonder if there is any correlation...

 

[Sabanist]

chumming sharks should be outlawed.....there; as it is in Florida....

I agree but im not sure it would apply to a glass bottom boat. I know its illegal for divers to feed sharks in florida as a tourist attraction but not sure about chumming on a glass bottom boat tour. Its not illegal for fisherman to chum so that would be the argument. Maybe someone knows more. Bad day none the less. Ive dove in that very spot and there were sharks, the operator we used did not feed them but said another operator in town does and that is why they are so popullous there