Five people have been rescued after a shark bit their inflatable boat, leaving them stranded at sea.
The creature had been hooked by the fishermen, who had been in Alexander Bay, off the Esperance coast near Perth, Western Australia, when the incident occurred, ABC Australia reported.
The shark took a bite out of the boat, causing it to deflate and become submerged in water. This damaged the engine and fuel lines—stranding the men at sea. Authorities realized the five fishermen were missing at around 8 p.m. local time on Sunday, when people noticed they had not returned.
Australian Maritime Safety Authority
“We were fishing and we caught a shark, and when we brought it to the front of the boat, it popped the front pontoon,” skipper Jacob Ovesby told ABC. “There was a bit of water onboard because we popped the front. It’s seen better days. Good for people on the beach to make the right call and call for help. That’s probably the most important thing.”
Officials from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority and DFES Marine Rescue Esperance finally found the men at approximately 3:36 a.m. AEDT.
A rescue aircraft found the boat semi-submerged with all 5 occupants onboard “waving for help,” the maritime safety authority said in a statement. “They maintained overhead, ensuring the safety of those stranded until the volunteer vessel arrival,” it read.
When the five men were picked up, they slept for the entire four-hour journey home, ABC reported. They were assessed by paramedics who determined they were uninjured.
Australian Maritime Safety Authority
It is not clear what shark species is responsible for deflating the boat, but over half of the world’s shark species can be found in Australian waters.
In this part of the world, the most commonly sighted species by fishermen are the dusky whaler sharks, sandbar sharks, gummy sharks, and whiskery sharks.
However, more infamous and dangerous species can make their way to these waters, too, including great white sharks.
The good news is that attacks like this remain rare, although they have occurred before.
In September, the Australia Maritime Authority rescued three people who had been stranded southeast of Cairns in the Coral Sea, after the hulls of the vessel were damaged by several shark attacks.
Sharks do not hunt humans as prey, so attacks usually occur only if they feel provoked threatened in some way. Sharks may also approach boats after mistaking its noises and movements to a prey item.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
