Archive for the 'California' Category
Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009
A woman says she is recovering from bites received in a shark attack at Terramar Beach at Carlsbad, Calif.
Bethany Edmund of Encinitas, CA, said she was swimming at the Carlsbad beach Aug. 25 when she felt a sharp pain in her foot that she initially suspected was caused by an underwater reef or another swimmer.
“I literally felt someone took my ankle and yanked me backwards, and I thought it was the swimmers that were near me,” said Edmund.
Edmund, who was also taking underwater pictures, said the shark then smashed into her, giving her a big bruise on her thigh.
The shark attacked her again, leaving Edmund with a bite on her thigh and the frightened woman quickly ran to shore. Specifics of Edmund’s injuries were not reported, but KGTV said the Encinitas resident was back in the ocean two days after the attack.
An unidentified shark expert said the bite marks indicate it was a baby great white shark. The same expert suggested the shark may have mistook Edmund’s bright green toenail polish for a fish.
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Wednesday, August 12th, 2009
Seacliff and New Brighton state beaches are closed for up to seven days after visitors spotted a shark chomping on a porpoise off Seacliff beach at around 3 p.m. Tuesday.
“We have a confirmed predatory activity attack by a shark,” said Kirk Lingenfelter, superintendent with California State Parks, who ordered the closures when a four-foot long harbor porpoise washed up on Seacliff beach soon after the shark was spotted. Lingenfelter said researchers are still determining the size and type of the shark.
In keeping with protocol, the beaches will be closed to swimming, bathing and surfing within one mile of the shark sighting. Seabright and New Brighton could open by the weekend if no more sightings are reported.
The Santa Cruz County closures follow the closure of three miles of Stinson Beach in Marin County on Monday due to reported shark sightings there. Those beaches could reopen Friday.
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Tuesday, August 11th, 2009
Stinson Beach was closed Tuesday to swimmers, waders, and surfers following a pair of shark sightings.
Golden Gate National Recreation officials told CBS 5 that they received two “reliable” shark sighting reports on Monday. As a result, they made the decision to close the beach for 5 days. The beach was to remain closed until Saturday, although the length of the closure could be extended if additional sightings occured.
Officials did not immediately know what kind of shark was spotted, but noted that Great White Sharks are very common in the area and there have been several attacks over the years.
The Stinson beach closure is the first in Northern California following a string of warnings in recent days to beachgoers in Oregon after a string of unusual shark sightings – and the capture of a 12-foot creature – along the Oregon coastline.
Tuesday, July 21st, 2009
According to the LA Times, a great white shark about 6 feet long and 150 pounds was caught by a fly fisherman off La Jolla last week.
It’s believed to be the first great white taken off the California coast using a fly rod and reel.
Jeff Patterson was fishing about five miles offshore when the white shark hit.
The fight lasted about 25 minutes. Patterson thought it was a mako shark until he got it close enough to the boat and realized it was a great white.
Being that it’s not legal in California to catch great whites, Patterson released the shark after taking a picture.
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Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009
Cal Fire officials said Monday that no beach advisories will be posted after a surfer was hurt off Shell Beach in what is suspected to have been a bite by a small shark or other marine animal because the cause of his injury can’t be confirmed.
About 8 p.m. Sunday, a 26-year-old man reported that his foot was hurt while he was surfing in the waters off of Silver Shoals Drive.
San Luis Ambulance medics took the man to Arroyo Grande Hospital to be treated for what they described in radio dispatches as “numerous puncture wounds” from “an unknown marine animal.”
But fire officials said Monday that they could not confirm the injuries came from a “dangerous marine animal” attack.
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Thursday, May 14th, 2009
Some dudes in Sand Diego caught a 386-pound thresher shark with a 16-foot body and 6-foot long tail while fishing about 10 miles northwest of San Diego. It took nearly three hours to get the whopper inside the 26-foot long boat.
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Wednesday, January 14th, 2009
A second local resident has come forward saying he saw what appeared to be a big shark in the waters off San Clemente, California.
Dave Schulte said he was at Riviera Beach at 7 a.m. today when something “big and gray” came out of the water near Seal Rock, nearly a half-mile offshore and was apparently spooking the seals.
Pacific Coast Shark News also posted a reported sighting in San Clemente back on Jan. 8.
Just sayin’…
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Saturday, September 20th, 2008
Evan over at Surftherenow posted these pics of a the damage a shark did to a surfer’s board in Lompoc, CA. The attack happened September 7, but information about the incident was just released this week. “Kyle” was surfing Surfer’s Beach when a 14-16 ft Great White started circling him. The surfer got off his board and used it as a shield, fins out, between him and the shark. Smart move. Kyle managed to escape uninjured. His surfboard… not so lucky.
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Friday, August 29th, 2008
Another shark sighting will keep people out of the waters at Stinson Beach through at least Labor Day.
Last weekend, a surfer spotted an 8 to 10 ft shark — possibly a great white — about 125 yards offshore. Then another shark was sighted Thursday evening around 6:30pm.
Sightings typically prompt an automatic three-day water closing, as sharks generally spend several days feeding in an area.
Officials originally said the waters of Stinson Beach would remain off-limits until Friday, but now they’ve extended the closure through the holiday weekend.
If there are no more sightings over the weekend, the beach will be re-opened Tuesday morning.
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Thursday, August 28th, 2008
One year ago today, Todd Endris was attacked by a 16 ft shark at Monterey Bay, CA.
Endris was resting on his board when, out of nowhere, he was catapulted 15 feet in the air by a shark. The shark then bit into his back, clamped down, and shook him like a rag doll. The huge shark continued to rip him apart until some dolphin’s showed up and the shark let go.
Endris’ buddies dragged him to shore with a with a 40″ gash on his back. A huge flap of skin was hanging from his body, exposing his spine and internal organs. Ew.
Surgeons spent six hours, 500 stitches and 200 staples putting him back together. After 6 days in the hospital, Endris somehow came out alive. Six weeks later, he was back in the water. You’re a brave man, Todd Endris.
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