Rare shark attack in Sydney Harbor makes swimmers nervous

() – A shark attack in an exclusive area of ​​Sydney Harbour, not far from the city’s iconic Opera House, prompted authorities to call for swimmers to avoid the water at dawn and dusk, when aggressive bull sharks are most assets.

A woman, identified by local media as Lauren O’Neill, was attacked on Monday night after taking a dip on a private dock in the exclusive residential area of ​​Elizabeth Bay.

Expert analysis of the bite suggests it belongs to a bull shark, a common species that can grow up to 3.5 meters long and is a frequent visitor to the port’s warmer waters at this time of year.

Sydney Harbor is central to the life of a city of more than 5 million people, as a means of commuting to work and local beaches, and as a place to explore and play at weekends.

Monday night’s attack was the first in Sydney Harbor since 2009, when a bull shark Australian Navy diver’s arm ripped off near Green Island.

Sydney councilor Linda Scott told the latest attack had shocked residents; However, he said that was unlikely to deter them from getting into the water.

“Sydney residents love swimming in Sydney Harbour. “There are local swimming groups around Potts Point and Elizabeth Bay that meet regularly to swim,” he said.

“While this recent attack is a shock to Sydneysiders, the risk of unprovoked shark attacks is incredibly rare,” he said. “Sydneysians embrace our beautiful harbour, but they do so knowing it is a marine ecosystem.”

As the sun set Monday, O’Neill, a kayaker, was in the water near a private dock when a bull shark sank its teeth into her right leg.

Witness Michael Porter told affiliate Sky News that he had just returned from work when he heard a “soft cry for help” through the front window.

He ran outside and found O’Neill clinging to a ladder attached to the dock, surrounded by water stained red with blood.

“It was like the worst horror movie you’ve ever seen,” Porter told Sky News.

Local veterinarian Fiona Crago also heard her cries and ran to the dock with two compression bandages which she used to wrap the wound and stop the flow of blood.

“She was severely mutilated on her right leg and was losing a lot of blood,” he said.

“My neighbors were amazing… the people around her calmed her down. In fact, he remained conscious throughout the entire ordeal. He was very brave. Also very polite. I was saying ‘thank you’ to people,” Crago said.

Australia is second only to the United States when it comes to “unprovoked” shark attacks, according to the International Shark Attack File.

In Australia, most have occurred in New South Wales, home to the world’s largest shark tagging program.

Along the coast, from Bega Valley in the south to Tweed Heads on the Queensland border, drones, listening stations and drum lines are used to detect the presence of sharks.

Many locals use the SharkSmart app to receive alerts when a tagged shark is detected within 500 meters of one of the 37 shark listening stations located along the coast. The alerts too are sent to an account on social media platform. This week alone, the system detected eight tagged bull sharks, according to the state government.

Dr Amy Smoothey, a shark scientist with the NSW Department of Primary Industries, says her team has tagged 264 bull sharks since 2009, and of those 87 were within Sydney Harbour. The most tagged sharks detected in the port on a single summer day was 18, he said.

According to their research, sharks move to shallow areas to feed at times of low light, at dawn and dusk, with greater risk after heavy rains that turn the water cloudy and ideal for ambushing predators.

January and February are peak months for bull sharks in Sydney Harbour, which go there to feed and breed during the warmer months. When the temperature drops, they swim back to open water and travel north to spend the winter and spring, Smoothey said.

“The water temperature currently in Sydney Harbor is a lovely 22 or 23 degrees Celsius, so it is the preferred water temperature for bull sharks,” he added.

Despite the frequency of bull shark visits to Sydney Harbour, there is no independent system to monitor them.

The port covers a vast area of ​​about 55 square kilometers. The fact that it is used by tens of thousands of people each day with very few interactions with bull sharks suggests the risks are low if people take precautions, Smoothey said.

Climate change means sharks are likely to stay longer in the region’s coastal and port areas, he added.

“Modelling of bull shark movements in relation to the projected strengthening of the East Australian Current suggests that bull sharks will be active in New South Wales waterways for longer due to the availability of their water temperatures.” favorite,” Smoothey said.

Scott, the councilwoman, said officials investigating the circumstances of Monday’s attack will determine whether further precautions are necessary.

But he says he doesn’t think Sydney swimmers would stop getting in the water.

“Residents I have spoken to in the last 24 hours understand that the very low risk of an unprovoked shark attack is something we live with in our beautiful Sydney Harbour,” he said, adding that people should take precautions sensible

“Swim in the right places, swim during daylight hours, swim away from fish bait or sewage outlets,” he said. “Taking all necessary steps to reduce risk means we can all live together in harmony.”