NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The United States Coast Guard rescued a 51-year-old man yesterday after he was bitten by a shark while fishing aboard a vessel near Bimini, according to US authorities.
According to reports, the motor vessel Shear Water crew contacted the Coast Guard around 12.50 pm and reported that a man aboard had been bitten by a shark while fishing and that a tourniquet had been placed on the man’s arm to prevent further blood loss.
A Coast Guard Air Station Miami MH-65 Dolphin helicopter and crew arrived on scene and hoisted the man, before transferring him to awaiting emergency medical team at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
He was reportedly in stable condition.
An Air Station Miami HC-144 airplane and crew assisted with communications efforts with the Dolphin aircrew.
“This was the best possible outcome to a truly terrifying situation,” Coast Guard District Seven Command Duty Officer Sean Connett said.
“This individual was fortunate a fellow crew member was able to render aid prior to the Coast Guard’s arrival which, allowed for a quick extraction from the vessel.”
Every year, around 70 unprovoked attacks are reported worldwide
The Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File (ISAF) investigated 137 alleged shark-human interactions worldwide in 2021.
ISAF confirmed 73 unprovoked shark bites on humans and 39 provoked bites.
Of the remaining 25 cases, four involved bites to motorized or non-motorized marine vessels.
The 2021 worldwide total of 73 confirmed unprovoked cases was in line with the most recent five-year, 2016-2020, average of 72 incidents annually.
But unprovoked case numbers were significantly down in 2020, which experts attribute to lockdowns associated with the pandemic.
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