Shark Attacks 2nd Teen Off Fla. Panhandle

[question everything]

Shark Attacks 2nd Teen Off Fla. Panhandle

By BILL KACZOR, Associated Press Writer 13 minutes ago

A teenage boy was bitten and critically injured Monday in the second shark attack in three days along the Florida Panhandle.

The boy, whose age and name were not released, was taken to Bay Medical Center in Panama City. The nature of his injuries was not immediately released. He was attacked off Cape San Blas, a popular vacation destination about 80 miles southeast of the Destin area, where 14-year-old Jamie Marie Daigle of Gonzales, La., was killed by a shark on Saturday.

(snip)

After Saturday's attack, a 20-mile stretch of shore was closed to swimmers, but beaches reopened Sunday with a double staff of sheriff's beach patrol officers.

Florida averaged more than 30 shark attacks a year from 2000 to 2003, but there were only 12 attacks off the state's coast last year, according to figures compiled by the American Elasmobranch Society and the Florida Museum of Natural History.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050627/ap_on_re_us/shark_attack

[ZR2]

1. If you are in the water

Then you are food.

[RetroLounge]

2. Ah, the summer distraction is here.

until the next cute white girl disappears...

RL

[HuckleB]

3. Exactly.

A TV news mainstay makes it to LBN!

[BlueStateBlue]

57. The worrisome thing is that 2001 was the year of the shark attack

until September 11. Hope they're not trying to distract us from the big plan...

[KurtNYC]

4. Note the way the headline is written

it would imply that ONE shark has attacked twice. But clarity isn't the goal for these journalists.

[QC]

5. Who ever would have imagined that there are sharks in the ocean?!?!

I'm shocked! Shocked, I tell you! :wow:

[Lost4words]

6. The local chamber of commerce must be going nuts!

I am sorry for the child, I truly hope he is OK. I wonder how far from the shore he was?

Can't Jeb do something damn-it! Lets get Jeb a boogey board!

(GOP logic switch ON)

We have to stop this fish terrorism from happening in our territorial waters. To stop this scourge we must declare total war against, YES,.... YES,...total war against the entire sea turtle population. Only then can we swim safe from terrorists sharks, only when every sea turtle is dead are we safe in our churches our homes and our bath tubs. God Bless America!

(GOP logic switch OFF)

[ET Awful]

7. Where the heck is Sheriff Brody when you need him?

And have Quint bring his boat around too :)

[losdiablosgato]

12. WE ARE GOING TO NEED A BIGGER BOAT!!!!!

[montana_hazeleyes]

25. LOL

One of my favorite movie lines of all.lol

[barb162]

36. Just what I was thinking

especially the stuff about doubling the guards, etc. But gotta keep that money rolling in and the beaches open. Who would be fucking dumb enough to go in the water after an attack where someone died a few days ago. WHat wre the parents of this kid thinking?

[AlCzervik]

8. this boy was chumming the water while fishing-bad idea

[ET Awful]

13. You're shitting me? He was chumming the water and folks

wonder why a shark attacked?

What the HELL is wrong with people?

[Maddy McCall]

17. Where did you read that? I've seen no indication of that.

But I do wonder if the girl who was killed was on her period. Supposedly you shouldn't get in the ocean when you are, because sharks can even sense the menses blood. :scared:

[barb162]

37. in the yahoo story it says he was fishing about waist deep

(it makes me wonder if some people in this country have ANY use of their brains)

[OKthatsIT]

9. Commercial fishing has wiped out their food supply

We can expect more attacks in future.

[fishnfla]

23. thats not true-the opposite is

Commercial gill netting was banned in FLa several years gone by now. The fish populations are booming, especially near shore. The mullet and other fish are in the surf and the sharks are too


EDIT; if anything, commercial fishing of sharks is decimating their populations (shark fin soup)

[ladjf]

24. Just got back from the Bahamas.

We went snorkeling several times. The only large fish we saw were two
record sized barracudas and an 8 ft. long bull shark. Sadly, the coral fish population was down to about 10% of what it was in 1985, my previous time in the Bahamas.

The sharks are hungry. It's time to get out of the water. My 26 yr. old son thought that I was being a coward. But, that's the difference between being 26 yrs old and 69 years old.

[barb162]

38. Good point. I notice this in Hawaii too. They never like to talk

about shark "visits" there or I guess any other place that makes a lot of money off beach and swimming activities. I was on one of the subs that take you down about 150 feet about a mile offshore. I saw man-eating sharks there right off Waikiki and other beaches. There are missing people in Hawaii who I guess the authorities will say are drownings, but it's more likely shark attacks

[Ezlivin]

10. Why do sharks hate our freedom?

If I were out looking for food and came upon a shark, I'd kill it and eat it.

If I'm out swimming and a shark is looking for food I'd expect it do to do the same.

That's your cycle of life, right?

[u2spirit]

31. Your post title made me spew my soda

you owe me a new keyboard. When will the global "war on shark bites" commence. As soon as Bush's business cronies figure out a way to make a dime off of it, it will happen!

[Lochloosa]

11. They suspect a Bull Shark in the first attack

From a native Floridian, there is no way I would get in the water when there is a Bull around. You here about Great Whites, Tiger, Hammerheads...other the the white, nothing is meaner or more likely to eat you. Should have kept the beaches closed. IMO

[Maddy McCall]

16. Yes, they should have. But I'm sure that the tourist dollar was...

more of a consideration than sacrificing a life or two.

Maybe they'll keep it closed now. We won't be going this year, that's for sure.

[Maddy McCall]

14. Here's a photo of the bad boy (or girl)

I'm glad the media are covering this. I know where *we* won't be vacationing this summer. :scared:

And no trip to Ship Island, either. :scared:

[Endangered Specie]

19. You realize you stand a better chance dying on the car/plane trip

than getting eaten by a shark...

[ladjf]

26. Based on current statistics, you are correct. However, the numbers

are changing.

[Maddy McCall]

28. Well, if you're using the same statistical set...

People who drove to a Florida panhandle beach and died in a wreck.
People who were attacked by sharks on a Florida panhandle beach.

I'd say the odds of being attacked by a shark are pretty high right now. Too uncomfortably high for me, anyway.

[ladjf]

29. As as sometime skin diver, I've been interested in this topic for

years. About twenty years ago, I recollect that there were about 15 sharks strikes per year in the entire world. Now, Florida is averaging over 30 per year. I just got back from the Bahamas. We snorkeled about four times. During those dives we saw very few reef fish but did see two record sized barracudas and an 8 ft. bull shark. Something is definitely changing the odds. Personally, I'm through with diving in the Gulf or ocean. It just makes me uncomfortable to be at the mercy of a hungry creature who could so easily decide to eat me.

[Maddy McCall]

44. I saw a tv show a year ago... a barracuda desided to "turn" on a scuba...

diver. It ripped her face in half and ripped her mask off. Thank god she wasn't way deep in the water. She made it to the surface, but she still bears the scar of the wayward barracuda.

Yes, it's an interesting topic. I live near the MS Gulf Coast. The water there is pretty muddy, but when you get out to the barrier islands, it's beautiful blue-green water. However, with all of these sharks on the prowl, I'll hand closer to the land.

Signed,
Mississippi Landlubber. :D

[alarimer]

50. Actually not really

In 2004 there were 30 shark attacks nationwide (2 fatal). In Florida there were 12 which was less than in 2001 and 2001.

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/sharks/statistics/statsus.htm

[Maddy McCall]

27. Two attacks in three days.

Maybe so, but I'd prefer not to toy with dying in a shark's jaws. I was 12 when I first saw JAWS, and I have an irrational fear of sharks.

I'll spend my vacation in the mountains, instead.

[Endangered Specie]

62. where you can get eaten by a bear?

:evilgrin:

[QC]

30. Yeah, the most dangerous thing here in the Panhandle

is the out-of-state drivers: turning right from the left lane (and left from the right lane), slamming on their brakes for no apparent reason every few yards, driving either half or double the speed limit, cruising along for miles and miles at low speed in the left lane, etc. For some reason, people think that the rules of physics and common sense don't apply when they're on vacation.

Frankly, the sharks are the least of my worries.

[Endangered Specie]

64. Indeed, visitors who dont know the local driving customs

are quite dangerous... for instance, everyone KNOWS that here the beltline speed limit is really 15 over the posted figure, and the posted is actually a mandatory minimum.

[Scout1071]

67. Check out this pic taken off the panhandle 2 wks ago.

This was off St. George Island. It's me and and my two (much) younger brothers.

I'm fairly certain it's a dolphin, but what threw me for a loop was how dark it appeared. When it first surfaced near my kayak I thought it was dolphin but it really appeared black in color and that put enough doubt in my mind to get the boys back to shore. The fin was slightly curved, but again...I've never seen a dolphin that dark.

St. George Island is about 75 miles south of Tallahassee.

[Roland99]

15. July 4 holiday coming up. Anyone thinking of the mayor of Amity from JAWS?

[Ilsa]

18. Yeah, I can still see him smoking in the Emergency Room,

a site that hasn't been witnessed in decades.

[Endangered Specie]

20. Why the hell does this get so much coverage?

First, I really dont care but I should point out that the odds of you dying by shark are less than that of flying, driving, taking an elevator (which is safer than taking the stairs), lightning, drowning and probably undertoe... some of them by orders of magnitude!

And secondly, realize that we humans kill hundreds of thousands of sharks for every one of us they eat. Just another little tidbit.

If your that scared, please, by all means, dont leave home.

[NNN0LHI]

35. Jaws. Seen any movies lately about that killer lightning?

Last time (a few years ago) the corporate news decided shark attacks would be the current distraction DU didn't fall for it and it wasn't allowed on LBN. This time?

Don

[daleo]

21. Better call Fish Police.

Stop that fish!

An old SCTV skit.

[stanwyck]

22. Underwater is safer

As a scuba diver, I've been with sharks on about a dozen occasions. Usually female blacktips (after mating season -- you talk about your rough sex..you should see how beatup these sharks are). When you're underwater, the sharks usually stay at a distance. They're more attracted to snorklers or surfers, the thrashing on the surface signals the possibility of something to eat.
I've only seen a bull shark once, in Provodenciales -- my first open water dive. I never would have noticed him if the dive master hadn't pointed him out to me. I was shocked the other divers were being so nonchalant.

[oneighty]

33. As a navy diver

with hundreds of open ocean dives I have seen one shark in the water while I was in the water. It was a large hammerhead nose to nose in the foggy water a mile or so off Fort Lauderdale.

Strange, huh?

180

[barb162]

39. did it scare the hell out of you?

[oneighty]

41. What I could see

of it I thought it looked like a real big black gold fish (The one that looks a bit like the hammerhead). As he/she disappeared I learned my head could indeed turn 360 degrees without effort. Hee hee hee.

180

[barb162]

42. Did you get out of the water as fast as you could?

[oneighty]

45. Of course not

My diving partner and I were on a mission. Official business safe from sharks. Actually at the time we were supposed to get out of the water if sharks were present.

One time off South Carolina we were recovering practice mines in about 80 feet of water. Orders came from the minesweeper we were working with to stop diving operations. Side scan sonar had detected "A large object entering the area". Divers do not like to hear this kind of news. Really they do not. Ignorance is bliss. Next day we are diving again keeping in mind the large object.

Ahh Sea stories. I can tell them all day.

180

[barb162]

47. do they ever tell you, well , a sub, a large fish?

(I only like to look at the ocean...I swim only in pools where I can see the bottom).

[oneighty]

59. No.

In those waters large tiger sharks are common. Whites are there too but less common.


180

[barb162]

66. You are brave

[stanwyck]

40. Wow. I'd love to

see a hammerhead. I hope, someday, to go to the Maldives...supposedly quite a few hammerheads there.
We've had promises of hammerheads sighted in the area when we're on the dive boats...but no sightings yet.
What a bizarre looking creature.

[oneighty]

43. Most of my

military diving was in murky waters making it impossible to see a shark unless they get really close. I did a lot of diving in the Mediterranean Sea. That was clear water most of the time. We were only vaguely aware that there were sharks in the Med. Pays to be ignorant! Huh?

180

[alarimer]

51. Divers are more likely to doe of other causes

There has been a rash of diving deaths recently. 7 I think in the last two weeks in the Carribbean and Bahamas. Not from shark attacks but more likely due to a variety of causes. It was an article on http://www.underwatertimes.com.

[oneighty]

60. Indeed.

I worked in the diving industry for a number of years. I also worked in diving research For Dr. Ed Lanphier at a large university. Got the bends there one fine Thursday morning. Spent many hours in the chamber being treated. We received quite a number of "What to do tel-calls" concerning diving accidents.

180

[alarimer]

68. I meant to say die but I can't fix my typo

I don't worry about sharks much. I swim in the ocean a lot. I try to avoid where people are actively fishing but that's about it.

[Dulcinea]

58. Hammerheads

are pretty plentiful in the Galapagos. We saw a few in 2001 while we were there.

Our family just came back a month ago from the Florida Panhandle! We had a lovely time, but we didn't go far from shore enough to see any sharks.

[smirkymonkey]

32. That's the last time I will complain about the freezing cold, but

non-shark infested, waters of the New England Coast. Sharks terrify me.

[cosmicdot]

34. flashback to the Summer of 2001

we know what happened last time post-summer of sharks and former Rep. Gary Condit

:scared:

[katamaran]

46. I was thinking the same thing

I was thinking the same thing. Sharks, missing white girls, other such fluff. Then 9/11 came and who gave a f*ck about sharks anymore? That was a few months into *'s first term, now we are a few months into *'s second term. If he goes to Crawford in August, watch out.

(Coincidences freak me out)

:hide:

[LizW]

48. Something tells me the pool's going to be crowded

when we go down to Destin in a couple of weeks.

[SoCalDem]

49. Sensational headline..Bah

should say.. 2nd person attacked by A shark..

The headline makes it could like there is a Jaws-type shark patroling the beaches looking for juicy teen-morsels.

They are JUST sharks, people.. doing what sharks do ..to live.. It's nothing personal.

WE kill helpless livestock animals for our food..we are predators too:(

[NNN0LHI]

52. Experts To Shark-Phobes: Attack On Girl Not A Trend

http://news.tbo.com/news/MGBQ5748GAE.html

TAMPA - Even while riding in a helicopter hundreds of feet above the waters of Tampa Bay, Alex Slater knows a shark when he sees one.

``Right there, there's one,'' said Slater, pointing to the black bull shark swimming over a sandbar near the Gandy Bridge. ``He's a big one.''

Slater, senior biologist at The Florida Aquarium, said bull sharks are common along Florida's coats, especially during the summer when sharks migrate north to hunt.

Experts said it was a bull shark that killed 14-year-old Jamie Marie Daigle in Destin on Saturday. Daigle, vacationing from Gonzales, La., was swimming and playing on a boogie board about 100 yards offshore when the shark attacked and bit off her leg. A nearby surfer pulled her back to the beach, but she later was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Slater said fatal shark attacks are rare. Each year, there are 60 to 80 shark attacks worldwide, and 11 or fewer are fatal.

[leveymg]

53. Be afraid, anyway - Vote Republican for Protection.

We all know how well the current Administration protects life and limb. :eyes:

[FourStarDemocrat]

65. "The sharks are now in their last throes." -- Dick Cheney

"If the Question is, are sharks dangerous, then I'd say Yes, sharks ARE dangerous."--Donald Rumsfeld

[TerdlowSmedley]

54. My husband, not normally a hysteric, is reading tea leaves.

He notes, with a feeling of great queasiness, that just before 9/11 there were seemingly daily reports of shark attacks in the US. Then there was all the front-page news about Danny Amonte, the ace Little League pitcher who turned out to be two years too old to play Little League. Then, of course, came that fateful day and the shark and Danny Amonte disappeared from the headlines. Now, my husband notes, we have lots of shark bite stories and a smaller story in the news this week about how Danny Amonte has graduated from high school. Sharks, Little League, terrorists. Is there a pattern emerging? Let's hope not.

[CottonBear]

55. Breaking news: sharks live in the ocean and eat things that swim.

Don't go out so far in the water and you'll stand a much better chance of not being bitten. That's not to say a shark can't come in close to shore, it's just less likely.

The older I get the less comfortable I am swimming in the ocean. I don't go out very far.

[Career Prole]

56. "Attack On Girl Not A Trend"....Shark Attacks 2nd Teen

Must suck being the mayor in Jaws!


Shark Attacks 2nd Teen Off Fla. Panhandle
PENSACOLA, Fla. - A teenage boy fishing in waist-deep water Monday was bitten and critically injured in the second shark attack in three days along the Florida Panhandle.
http://tinyurl.com/9r4qz

[fishnfla]

63. The last fatal shark attack was in Tampa Bay

some guy got eaten by a huge bull shark swimming in the canal behind his house.

Volusia Cty, where I live, is supposed to be the shark bite capital, surfers get small bites all the time.

Might have to do with the water temperature. Offshore upwellings of cold water cause more activity in the warm nearshore waters.


typo in the tbo report: coats

[rppper]

69. hey neighbor!!!

i'm in daytona....you always hear about some surfer getting bit at ponce inlet.

[radwriter0555]

61. SERIAL KILLER SHARKS!

Holy guacamole, batman!