Commerical Free Diver Attacked By Bull Shark Off Jupiter This Afternoon

[RickI]

Reportedly two and perhaps three commercial spearfishermen were free diving shooting cobia with Hawaiian slings off Jupiter this afternoon in 50 ft. of water. Two divers were returning to the 18 ft. boat with a cobia. Once the fish had been dropped over the gunnel into the boat, a bull shark reportedly attacked one of the divers. This was indicated to have been said in Spanish to a person acting as interpreter at the dock.

It was reported that the shark bit the man's shoulder area and torso. The call came into Palm Beach County Emergency Services at about 1:11 pm today, April 3, 2015. Paramedics were quoted in one news report as saying the man was also bitten "slightly" on the head suggesting multiple bites may have occurred. The victim was awake, sitting upright and talking at the marina.

Continued with background on the practice of shooting cobia from beneath free swimming sharks which "may" (or may not), have been a factor here, videos and related information at: Free Diver Attacked By Shark Off Jupiter - FKA Kiteboarding Forums

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[dumpsterDiver]

Sad thing to hear. He is a member of our local freediving club and a very nice guy. I'm sure they were using spearguns and not slings, but you never expect the newspaper to get it correct.

Spearfishing around bullsharks is exciting and dangerous. The divers generally use flashers to attract the sharks, chum to keep the sharks around and then attempt to shoot the cobia (which can be anywhere from 10 to 70 lbs) that are schooling with the sharks. It is a challenge to keep the sharks interested and not too aggressive and then once you shoot a cobia, it is a challenge to land it without it being eaten, often the divers have to "defend" the wounded fish. It takes teamwork and a bit of luck.

A couple clips I shot of doing this kind of spearing in the same area.

[video=youtube;xlcdEAwhlzw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlcdEAwhlzw[/video]

[video=youtube;2sT8Vwyw0ew]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sT8Vwyw0ew[/video]

my best one, i think

[video=youtube;AqbEhr8-1rc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqbEhr8-1rc[/video]

 

[RickI]

I am sorry to hear that he was injured. Have you heard how he is doing in the hospital. I thought using slings was a stretch in those conditions but with the media who knows. How long has this sort this shooting been practiced, I hadn't heard about it before? What sort of visibility do you think they had yesterday?

 

[bakodiver391]

Shooting fish right in front of bull sharks, no thanks.

 

[HalcyonDaze]

Spearboard has some more info: Spearfishing Diver attacked by bull shark offshore of Jupiter, Florida - Spearboard.com - The World's Largest Spearfishing Diving Boating Social Media Forum

From the photos of his wetsuit, it looks like he was very lucky - bite and spit, no attempt to take a piece out.

Shooting cobia off of bull sharks is pretty common practice in South Florida; they like to school with sharks, rays, and occasionally turtles. As dumpsterDiver said, it requires teamwork. I have played bodyguard once or twice for a shooter; thankfully the bulls were pretty copacetic on those days. Guys will pop cobia off the sharks during our feeding dives, hook them on a lift bag, and get the fish to the surface without a hitch. Most of the times I've seen a cobia get taken by a shark, it was still fighting on the end of the line - hence why you'll see a second diver try to stone fish that are struggling. Still, getting it off your hands and in the boat ASAP is advisable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNKv7OfAtso

From what I've read, the commercial guys were shooting in 50 ft of water and about 5 ft of viz. That latter part is bad news; it's the ones you don't see that are trouble. A friend of mine lost two fingertips back in December when a bull shark he didn't spot took his cobia while his fingers were in a loop of line. That dissuaded me from giving it a try until I have a lot more shooting experience under my belt.

I'm curious as to why they were shooting closer inshore if the viz was that bad; I would have tried going farther out.

 

[iamrushman]

sorry to hear the sad news of an injury...keep us informed of his progress.

 

[crazyqban67]

UPDATE: I just saw this on the news...

South Florida man talks about surviving shark attack - WSVN-TV - 7NEWS Miami Ft. Lauderdale News, Weather, Deco