In Hawaii, a swimmer was forced to fight off a shark attack using his diving knife.
An unidentified 68-year-old man was swimming off Anaehoomalu Bay Dec. 13 in Waikoloa on the Big Island. The man was about 400 yards offshore when a suspected tiger shark bit him on the lower left torso.
According to police, the man used his knife to fight the shark which quickly released him.
Witnesses said paddleboarders came to the man’s aid and helped him to shore around 8 a.m. One witness said the man was missing a good chunk of his flesh.
The injured swimmer was taken to the local hospital before being transported to Oahu for further treatment.
A tiger shark was later spotted in the area, and beaches were temporarily closed.
The shark bite incident comes shortly after another person is believed to have lost their life to a shark in the islands.
Fatal shark attack in Hawaii as state sees increase in tiger shark interactions
Fatal shark attack in Hawaii.
A married couple were snorkeling Dec. 8 off Keawakapu Point in South Maui.
Blake and Kristine Allen, 60, were about 50 yards off the point when the Blake said he spotted a shark swim by repeatedly. He lost sight of his wife and, unable to locate her, eventually swam back to shore and alerted authorities around noon.
The Maui Fire Department and Maui Ocean Safety conducted an extensive search on the water and by air. A bathing suit and mask were recovered, but at last report ownership has not been confirmed.
Searchers called off rescue efforts and the woman has been presumed deceased.
A witness confirmed seeing an estimated 12-foot tiger shark attacking the Krisrine and feeding on her in the water while other searchers also reported spotting a shark.
The Hawaii Department of Natural Resources has officially listed the case as a fatal shark attack.
Several other shark attack bites have been reported in the islands this year.
A surfer was bitten on the toe Oct. 18 off Kaawa Razorbacks in Oahu.
A scuba diver suffered puncture wound on the left calf and ankle Sept. 9 off Keahole Point, Kailua-Kona.
The event is considered as provoked; the diver may have been part of a shark encounter or shark dive when the 7- to 8-foot blacktip shark bit the leg.
A 51-year-old visitor from France was nearly killed in a shark attack Sept. 3 off Paia Bay, Maui. The unidentified tourist was snorkeling about 20 yards from shore in 10 to 15 feet of turbid water. Around 4 p.m. a shark grabbed her arm.
The tourist lost her left arm below the shoulder and suffered puncture wounds on her left torso; she lost her middle and index finger on her right hand as she tried to fight off the shark.
A rare cookiecutter shark encounter occurred off Kailua-Kona when a deep-water swimmer was floating in the water about 1.5 miles from shore Feb. 9. Just before 3:30 a.m. the cookiecutter shark grabbed the person’s right foot and calf.
While these encounters seem frightening, 450,000 to 570,000 people arrive on the island each year and the majority never see a shark.
All locations have been marked on the 2022 Shark Attack Map.
