Officials say the beach closures will allow the Coast Guard and Department of Fisheries to investigate the incident and “neutralize the shark threat if possible.”
Saturday 27 April 2024 1:56 PM UK
A British tourist is in intensive care after being attacked by a shark in Trinidad and Tobago.
Friday’s incident, which occurred near the Starfish Resort in Courland Bay, prompted the government to close seven beaches and a marine park along the Caribbean island’s northwest coast.
According to the Tobago House of Assembly, the shark appeared to be a bull shark and was 8-10 feet long and 2 feet wide.
Chief Secretary Farley Augustine said the victim was a 64-year-old British man, adding that he was in a “stable” condition but had suffered serious injuries to his arm, thigh and stomach.
A local official named him Peter Smith of Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire.
“Some reattachments have been done, for example on fingers, and hopefully that will save those fingers,” Mr Augustine told a news conference.
“We know there are significant wounds on one of his legs that cannot be fully closed, but he will require extensive work.
“The job for our healthcare professionals right now is to really stabilize and ensure that we can save life and limb as much as possible.”
A reward of $10,000 (£8,000) was initially offered for anyone who could catch the shark, but this was later withdrawn.
Stephanie Wright, a British tourist who saw the attack, said she saw people gathering on the beach and thought they might have been helping someone who had suffered a cardiac arrest.
“Then I saw a dorsal fin coming out of the sea and I said, ‘Oh my God, it’s a shark.’ And when I turned around, I saw the tail coming out.”
Orion Jackerov, water sports manager at Starfish Resort, also witnessed the incident and said the man was waist-deep in the water when the shark attacked.
“I saw a fin come out of the sea”
He told local media that the man and others near him in the water had their backs turned and did not see the shark approach.
“Other people in the water were physically trying to fight off the shark as it attacked,” he added.
A government statement said sharks were sighted in the Grafton area and Buccoo Reef Marine Park.
Officials said the closure would allow the Coast Guard and Department of Fisheries to investigate the incident and “neutralize the shark threat if possible.”
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are supporting the family of an injured Briton in Tobago and are in contact with the local authorities.”
Last year, there were 69 unprovoked attacks and 22 provoked bites worldwide, along with 14 deaths, according to the Florida-based International Shark Attack Record.
