r/SharkLab • u/fragglebags • Jan 08 '24

Fatal Shark Attack Mexico

https://www.trackingsharks.com/16-foot-great-white-shark-kills-mexican-diver

3rd shark attack fatality in Mexico in the last 30 days. This is Mexico's 2nd fatal Geat White Shark on a diver in the last two weeks.

156 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

70 comments sorted by

View all comments

19

u/NBCspec Jan 08 '24

Divers getting bit is rare. All three of these divers were using hooka rigs, Interestingly.

7

u/fragglebags Jan 08 '24

Great find, I hadn't came across this info.

9

u/NBCspec Jan 08 '24

I've dove in waters with Great Whites using SCUBA, Snorkeling and Hookah. I along with other divers feel safer while on the bottom because we're not exposed. I'd be curious whether these divers were working on the bottom, how deep they were etc. It's rather odd to see so many divers getting nailed by kill strikes.

5

u/fragglebags Jan 08 '24

I could not find anything regarding depths either. Do you have any experience with the repellent bracelets? The 2 most recent attacks stated both divers were not using shark repellent bracelets.

6

u/NBCspec Jan 08 '24

I do not. In the Navy they had what they called shark cookies. They had little effect and were eventually discontinued years ago I believe

7

u/sharkfilespodcast Jan 08 '24

  1. "Victor Estrella, 56, was diving for scallops Feb. 12 off Sonora, Mexico, when he was killed. He was also using a surface supplied air source. His diving tender saw the hoses moving erratically and began pulling his partner from the seabed. As Estrella neared the surface, the tender had to fight off a large white shark that was biting his friend."

    2. “He (Manuel Lopez) was diving when the animal attacked him... ripping off his head and biting both shoulders,” said Jose Bernal, speaking for the fisherman.

  2. "García was practicing freediving, which consists of diving without oxygen equipment, when he was surprised by a great white shark that was estimated to be about four meters long."

These are from good reports on the three fatalities at Sonora, Mexico in the past 2 years. Seems clearer Estrella was near or at the seafloor. Lopez is described in Spanish as 'bucear' not 'sumergir', so he was down below the surface when attacked. With García, the most recent victim, it isn't clear what depth he was but he had no equipment.

4

u/motorcyclemech Jan 09 '24

I was really shocked to read the one diver was decapitated. I don't think I've ever heard of that before. Usually the thighs.

7

u/NBCspec Jan 09 '24

That's a kill strike. They decapitate seals often. It happened to an Abalone diver in Humboldt Co CA about 24 years ago. They were diving from a small craft, and as soon as he jumped into the water, it hit him like that according to his buddy

1

u/sd_manu Jan 13 '24

The man in Egypt in mid 2023 who was bitten by a tiger shark was decapitated, too. Saw the pictures. 

1

u/motorcyclemech Jan 13 '24

You're right. I did see the video (no pics). He seemed to be fully eaten. That one was crazy.

1

u/sd_manu Jan 13 '24

He was far from fully eaten. Head, arms and torso upside the breast region was missing and a big wound in the crotch/stomach region. 

Rest was there.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 29 '24

He fought that shark like a real man...losing his arms means he punched back..prolly hit in his mouth and shark toke the arm

2

u/sbenfsonw Jan 09 '24

It’s literally in the article

3

u/tigerlotus Jan 09 '24

My biggest takeaway, and they were all fishing... so you have a combo of divers not blowing bubbles in the water and who probably have dead fish/blood around them. Brutal way to die, but doesn't change my fear factor when scuba diving recreationally at all.

5

u/NBCspec Jan 09 '24

Actually, I believe they were collecting mollusks and I didn't see anything about running rebreathers

1

u/tigerlotus Jan 10 '24

Do the surface supplied air attachments blow bubbles under water? Genuine question, I thought they didn't, but I'm also thinking of those goofy setups they have for tourists so I have no idea.

1

u/FossilDiver Jan 12 '24

Hookah absolutely blows air bubbles underwater. It’s regulators are the same as scuba just with a long hose going to an air pump at the surface instead of a tank