Concerned about sharks? Odds?

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

I just got video of quite a few sharkies this past week, in NC. :D In fact, we saw sharks on EVERY dive. One little guy was so close to me, swimming back and forth, that I could have reached out and stroked his back like a puppy. But I didn't. They think they like posing for me. I have several videos of sharks, never had one get aggressive with me. Of course, the KEY to seeing sharks, when you have a camera or video rig - be still and let them come to you!! Sharks don't like big flapping divers blowing bubbles and chasing them! Stay still and calm, relax, breathe slowly.. ;)

I have one video from last week posted already, it has a little cutie in it.
Diving the Titan on Vimeo

robin:D
 
Peter....I did google all three. Results said the same thing, "...while diving." That's not exactly definitive. If it had said, "...while freediving" I'd have been more aboslute.

Going back to the locale, you're a brave soul. I can see the odds are slim but I'll stick with even better odds and stay out of the area. :D
 
Omar Conger, 28, was attacked and killed on September 15, 1984 by a Great White Shark while diving in 15 feet of water near San Mateo, California.

San Mateo? I don't think a white shark can attack someone in San Mateo unless the shark first gets in a car and then drives to San Mateo.
 
Last edited:
Google does tell the stories.

"Omar Conger ­was another free-diving abalone hunter. He was one of four victims during a mini-feeding frenzy in 1984 near Santa Cruz, Calif. Conger and his diving partner, Chris Rehm, were a long way from shore, nearly 500 feet (150 meters), and about 15 feet (4.4 meters) apart when he took a moment to tread water and rest. Out of nowhere, a huge great white shark grabbed Conger, shook him and pulled him under. A few seconds later, the http://animals.howstuffworks.com/fish/shark.htmsharksurfaced with Conger still in its mouth and headed straight for Rehm. The big fish released Conger when he was close to Rehm and disappeared. Rehm pulled his friend onto a flotation mat and brought him back to shore, only to find that Conger was already dead from massive blood loss. The wounds to Conger's legs, hands and buttocks indicate that the great white was roughly 16 feet (5 meters) long.
Over the next two weeks there were three more shark attacks. Fortunately, those victims all survived."


"The case of Robert Pamperin is interesting because he may have actually been completely devoured by a giant great white shark. Pamperin and his diving partner, Gerald Lehrer, were diving for abalone off the coast of San Diego, http://geography.howstuffworks.com/united-states/california.htmCalif., in 1959, swimming about 50 feet (15 meters) apart. Lehrer heard Pamperin scream, "Help me!," and turned to see his fellow diver upright and high out of the water with his mask off. Lehrer swam toward his friend and watched as he descended slowly beneath the water. At this point, Lehrer dove down to see Pamperin in the mouth of a gigantic shark he estimated to be more than 22 feet (7 meters) long. Lehrer noted that Pamperin was in the shark's mouth up to his waist and was dragged down to the ocean's floor. Lehrer dived down and saw the shark thrashing about with Pamperin still in his mouth. He ascended to get a good breath, and then dived again to try to frighten the shark. This didn't work, so Lehrer swam to shore and alerted the life guards. Scuba divers spent two hours combing the waters for any sign of Pamperin, only to find a single swim fin and his inner tube."



Takes balls to get in the water and go diving to look for a shark victim :shocked2:


"Shark Kills Skin Diver Off San Miguel Island Death: Coast Guard officials believe a great white attacked James Robinson, who died of massive trauma.

A diver scouting for sea urchins in the waters off San Miguel Island was killed Friday in an attack by what was believed to be a great white shark--the state's first confirmed death from a shark attack in nearly six years.

Veteran diver James Robinson, 42, was treading water near his boat when the shark swooped in for a swift attack about 70 miles from Ventura, west of the Channel Islands.

Robinson had just finished a routine dive to scout for sea urchins and had deposited his equipment on board his boat. His two crew members were putting away the equipment when they heard Robinson scream--and whirled around to see him drifting unconscious in a gush of blood."

Gotta like the way they screwed up the title. He was most likely on hookah, but at the time of the incident he was just chillin' at the surface.
 
I just got video of quite a few sharkies this past week, in NC. :D In fact, we saw sharks on EVERY dive. One little guy was so close to me, swimming back and forth, that I could have reached out and stroked his back like a puppy. But I didn't. They think they like posing for me. I have several videos of sharks, never had one get aggressive with me. Of course, the KEY to seeing sharks, when you have a camera or video rig - be still and let them come to you!! Sharks don't like big flapping divers blowing bubbles and chasing them! Stay still and calm, relax, breathe slowly.. ;)

I have one video from last week posted already, it has a little cutie in it.
Diving the Titan on Vimeo

robin:D

Thanks for sharing!
 
I never would have guessed that the shark attack capital would be in Florida. I always though it was somewhere in South Africa or the California Coast. Or maybe I'm just thinking in regards to Great Whites, I'm not sure. Maybe I should tune in to Shark Week more often.
 
Peter....can you post the link to the first one?

Edit: Nevermind. Found it.

That was my suspicion hence my added note about those three in my original post!
 
I never would have guessed that the shark attack capital would be in Florida. I always though it was somewhere in South Africa or the California Coast. Or maybe I'm just thinking in regards to Great Whites, I'm not sure. Maybe I should tune in to Shark Week more often.

Let's call it shark "bite" or "encounter" capital. Mostly cases of mistaken identity affecting surfers. Exploratory "nips" and scratches for the most part. I nip will still require stitches and possibly surgery though.

The central Florida guys can correct me, but I think most of the bites in Florida are off New Smyrna inlet which is a popular break. Surfing conditions often means churned up water, hands and feet flapping in the water, flotsam coming out of the inlet and lot's of juvenile sharks. The inlet is a nursery for sharks.
 
Fla and Calif - its a matter of volume... which places/states have the most beaches and most people in the water? Duh... Fla and Calif. Both have very long coastlines.


robin:D
Except the highest density of white shark encounters occur in the North Coast (Red Triangle), where it tends to be cooler outside temperatures. In other words our beaches are not nearly as packed as SoCal, yet the majority of encounters happen at the North Coast. Actually we do not have that many beaches here. Most of our shoreline is very remote with sheer cliffs.
 

Back
Top Bottom