Shark attack is something that most people do not really think about until they are near the water. I am certainly one of those people who are fascinated by sharks, and by their attacks on human beings. I never knew that I would get to witness first hand what a shark can do. Back in the early eighties I got that chance, and it changed me. I still love sharks, but I have a whole new respect for their power and dangerous bite.
When I was a kid, we would take annual trips to Holden Beach, North Carolina every summer. The trip was always a blast, and the better part of my days were spent staring out into the water in hopes of spotting a shark. My brother and I both were into sharks, and so we often went on these hunts together.
One day we went out onto the pier, and were watching people fish. Obviously we were also hoping for some shark sightings. About ten minutes into our pier visit, we heard a bunch of people saying they saw a fin. We ran over to where they were standing and pointing, and then saw the fin for ourselves. The fin was pretty darn large, and the shadow of the shark was clear from where we were standing above it.
People were arguing back and forth over whether or not the shark was a dolphin, or actually a shark. The fin was far enough away that either one was possible. I knew a bit about sharks, and I knew it was a shark. It did not swim anything like a dolphin, and the shape of the shark and fin was clear. Also, it was too large to be a dolphin.
I kept this to myself as the fin swam in and out of view. Then we all lost sight of it. After about five minutes, the shark resurfaced directly below us at the pier. As we watched it disappear under the pier, we turned to look on the other side. As we did, we realized that two young men were surfing on the other side of the pier. The shark was headed straight for them.
We all began yelling to them but they could not hear us. After a couple of minutes, the shark appeared on their side of the pier. As it came out from under the pier on that side, the shark was very clearly a shark. The sun was shining directly down on it, and it was very large to us.
As we continued to yell to the surfers, the shark swam out towards them. After a minute or two, the shark disappeared again.
One of the surfers was sitting on his board and had noticed us yelling and waving finally. He waved back at us, and the next minute he was gone. The shark had grabbed his leg and yanked him under the water. This was lightening quick, and the guy came back up just as quickly. The water around him turned red, and he immediately began swimming to shore. His friend got to him quickly, and they both made it to shore without further incident.
The shark completely disappeared and apparently simply bit him once and left.
The guy had a huge bite mark on his lower calf. Fortunately, he was okay once he got medical attention but it took forty stitches to close the wounds.
Having seen the power of a shark up close like that, I now am very careful about where and when I step into the water.