The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has reported a shark bite at Davidsons Beach in Kaua’i and a child was bitten by a shark off Canary Island.
Doug Moore was surfing with his friend Ray Pigott in the turbid waters off the beach in Kekaha June 1. Around 8:25 a.m. he was in 4 to 6-foot-deep water when he felt a sharp pain on his right index finger.
At first, he thought it was a jellyfish but when he saw the shark called out “shark!”.
Pigott looked over at his friend and “saw the swirling, fins and some of the shark’s body,” he said on Instagram. He said the bite happened quickly and he yelled for Moore to keep an eye on the shark.
Moore and Piggot were able to paddle the roughly 100 yards back to shore and went to the Kaua’i Veterans Memorial Hospital. Moore needed 26 stitches to sew up his finger.
While the species involved has not been identified, locals suggested a tiger shark was involved. Piggot said another surfing companion got a good look at the shark and said it was an old scarred shark.
Following shark attack protocol, the DNR and the Department of Aquatic Resources have closed the beach for 24 hours. Shark warning and no swimming signs have been posted and department personnel will reevaluate the waters today for possible reopening.
There were two shark attack bites at the same beach in 2017.
A 28-year-old French surfer, known as Baboo Bourdenx lost his right leg to a shark in the area April 14. Bourdenx was about 100 yards from the beach when a tiger shark bit down on his leg. In an odd twist, Mac Piggot also witnessed that attack.
Mitch Milan was bitten on the hand at the same beach. Milan and a friend were about 150 yards out Oct. 9, when he was bitten on the hand.
With a large chunk of his board was missing, he was able to paddle back to shore. Based on the bite mark the shark was estimated to be about 12- to 14-feet-long.
Child bitten by shark off Canary Island.
Last month, a 6-year-old child was bitten by a shark while vacationing on Lanzarote, one of the Canary Islands off the coast of West Africa administered by Spain.
The unidentified child was playing in the water off the island on the north Island Beach of Famara May 19.
While playing in the water, he encountered an angel shark and was bitten on the right foot. It is possible he stepped on the shark, which are known to hide in the sand. He was taken to the Molina Orosa Hospital where he received 20 stitches.
Several rumors of other shark bites have been reported in the area over the past month, but nothing that has been confirmed at this point.
Both locations have been marked on the 2020 Shark Attack Map.
