/ 13 January 2010

Hopes fade of finding Fish Hoek shark victim

There is very little chance of finding the remains of a
Zimbabwean man who was attacked by a great white shark at Fish Hoek beach on Tuesday, a sea rescue spokesperson said on Wednesday.

“I would be amazed if we found anything now,” National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) spokesperson Ian Klopper said.

“The shark attacked him three times. It didn’t bite him and let him go. It came back and carried on eating.”

Klopper said the NSRI had been received repeated reports of body parts being washed up on the beach but none had been factual.

He said the NSRI was preparing to end its search on Wednesday afternoon as there was very little chance of finding anything.

The man, who was neck deep in water off Fish Hoek beach, was attacked at 3pm on Tuesday afternoon. He has been identified as Lloyd Skinner (37) of Zimbabwe.

The water at beaches around Fish Hoek was empty of surfers and bathers on Wednesday afternoon even as temperatures soared above 30°C.

“You’ve got to be stupid to get in the water right now,” Fish Hoek resident Eddie Roth said.

“There are a lot of sharks around at the moment.”

Roth, who paddles regularly around Fish Hoek, said a beach siren wailed on Wednesday when a shark was spotted.

He said a great white shark was spotted close to Fish Hoek beach on Wednesday morning.

“My wife and I heard the warning siren and we came to take a look. We spotted the shark just outside the kelp off the rocks beside the beach. It was about four metres long.”

Roth said he would keep on paddling despite the attack.

“It’s a risk every time you get in the water but normally there’s very little chance of being attacked by a shark.” – Sapa