Shark encounters in South Africa: A spearo fought with a shark and was left with one of its teeth in his head, while a bodyboarder who disappeared may have been involved in a fatal shark attack.
Jarid Norman was spearfishing April 14 off Umdloti in the northern KZN coast, South Africa.
The avid waterman swam into a cave where he shot a yellow-belly rockcod. After pulling in the fish, he held it under one arm to subdue the shaking fish.
Norman felt a bump, which he first thought was his dive buddy, Johnathan Greenway, being pushed into him by the rough breakwater. Then he saw a small reef shark swimming away.
He watched the shark as did a U-turn and swam toward him and realized he had been hit by the 4-foot (1.3m) shark. The spearfisherman pulled his spear from the rockcod and watched as the shark snatched the fish and swam off.
Greenway swam between the shark and asked Norman if he was okay and pointed out that Norman was bleeding from his head. At first, Norman thought the shark had just grazed his head, then Greenway said something white was protruding from his head.
The duo swam about 100 yards (100m) back to shore and Norman went home and pulled the tooth fragment from his head. He headed to the medical office and was cleaned up by the doctor.
Norman, who has been spearing for 20-years, thinks the shark was hungry as he has never encountered this behavior before.
Bodyboarder disappears, possible fatal shark attack.
National Sea Rescue Institute East London, South Africa, and police are working to find a missing 38-year old bodyboarder.
Robert Frauenstein, 38, disappeared April 13 off the surf line at Chinsta, South Africa.
His bodyboard was later found with bite marks consistent with a shark.
South African police dispatched K-9 search and Rescue and a police dive squad, which were joined by a helicopter donated by a local businessman.
As a precaution, the NSRI and Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality have warned beachgoers to take caution along the coastline between Easton London and North of Chinsta.
Both locations have been marked on the 2021 Shark Attack Map.
