Two more people in the Carolinas were bitten by sharks this week – a man swimming at Ocracoke Island in North Carolina and a boy at Isle of Palms, S.C.
The Ocracoke incident was the seventh shark attack in a month in North Carolina.
The 68-year-old man, Andrew Costello, was swimming about noon Wednesday 25 to 30 feet offshore in waist-deep water when he was bitten on his left lower torso and hip, lower left leg and both hands. He was airlifted to Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, where he was in fair condition. The hospital could not confirm Costello’s hometown, but Boston media reported that he is a Massachusetts resident.
Lifeguards at Ocracoke Beach, in Hyde County, said the man was swimming in front of a lifeguard stand. The shark was 6 to 7 feet in length, according to Hyde County officials.
On Tuesday evening, a 12-year-old boy suffered a minor shark bite in Isle of Palms County Park near Charleston. His name has not been released.
Park manager Cynthia Wilson said the boy and his mother approached lifeguards while they were packing up after their shift, around 6:05 p.m.
His leg injuries were “very likely” caused by a shark, Wilson said. Lifeguards administered first aid, and the fire department was called, but firefighters did not need to treat the boy further.
Mary Paisley, 48, of Hillsborough was on Ocracoke Beach when the man was attacked. She said he swam to shallower water and was helped onto the sand by others. He was conscious while waiting for medical care, she said: “Everyone was just concerned and calm and quiet. It was nothing like the ‘Jaws’ movie.”
Back in the water
About an hour after the attack, many people went back in the water, Paisley said. But she said she did not want her family to go back in. “For the rest of the week, I don’t think we’ll be getting in the water except to get our feet wet,” she said.
Still, she said she would not think of cutting her vacation short. That’s good news for tourism officials. The Fourth of July holiday weekend is one of the busiest of the summer for beaches, said Wit Tuttle, executive director of the state tourism office. He said he does not anticipate a drop in business.
Tuttle said that last summer brought a record number of visitors to North Carolina beaches, more than 6 million.
“We think we’ll have another record one this year,” he said. “These things are tragic, but I think people will understand they’re rare and isolated.”
Wednesday’s incident comes after attacks on the Outer Banks on Friday and Saturday.
Of the six North Carolina attacks in June, two teenagers bitten while swimming off Oak Island received the most serious injuries. Both had arms amputated.
North Carolina has averaged about three shark attacks per year in the past decade, according to the International Shark Attack File at the Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville.
Experts have suggested a number of reasons for the increase, including more people in the water, warmer waters and rising shark populations.
Shark fishing
Shark fishing near swimmers has been suggested as a factor. The June attacks prompted the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries to urge those fishing, especially for sharks, to do so away from swimmers and surfers.
Louis Daniel, director of the division, it would not be feasible to ban shark fishing, because the bait and equipment used to catch sharks are similar to what is used to catch other fish.
“If you put a baited hook in the water, you’re shark fishing,” Daniel said.
He added that water this summer has warmed up unusually quickly, which draws sharks closer to the shore. And he said federal regulations have long been in place to protect shark populations – and those populations are growing.
He said swimmers can protect themselves by being more vigilant about conditions that might draw sharks, such as avoiding murky water, not swimming if you are bleeding, not wearing shiny items and swimming near others. Staff writer Jane Wester contributed.
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