In Reply to: Solana Beach (San Diego) Fatal Shark Attack posted by Randy on April 25, 2008 at 09:42:43:

The victim, 66, was with a group of swimmers off Solana Beach when he was attacked. Authorities close a 17-mile stretch of beaches.

SOLANA BEACH -- A 66-year-old triathlete died this morning after being bitten by a shark while swimming off this beach 20 miles north of San Diego, authorities said.

Authorities identified the man as Dave Martin, a retired veterinarian who has lived in Solana Beach since 1970.

Richard Rosenblatt, a shark expert from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in Oceanside, told reporters that "this almost certainly was a great white shark." He said the attack fit the pattern of attacking from beneath, then moving away, and that the wounds also looked like they came from a great white shark.

The attack occurred about 7 a.m. near Fletcher Cove in an area known as Table Tops, said Lt. Phil Brust, a spokesman for the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.

The man was part of a group that swims every Friday morning in the Fletcher Cove area.

"They were swimming and the victim apparently yelled 'Shark,' or words to that effect, and the witnesses that were in the water apparently saw him actually being lifted out of the water and drug under," Brust said. "They went to his aid and dragged him onto the beach, where he succumbed to his injuries."

The attack reportedly took place about a quarter mile offshore. Paramedics rushed to the scene, but the man was declared dead at approximately 7:50 a.m.

The shark bit him on both legs, said Deputy Solana Beach Fire Marshal Dismas Ableman. The victim had apparently separated from the rest of his group when he was attacked, Ableman said.

Investigators from the San Diego medical examiner's office were at the beach this morning. They have not released the identity of the man.

The San Diego County Sheriff's Department ordered beaches closed along a 17-mile strip while helicopters searched for other sharks in the waters.

Beaches were closed indefinitely this morning from South Carlsbad to Torrey Pines beaches, said Julie Taber, a spokeswoman for the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District. She said no other shark sightings had been reported this morning.

Investigators are still trying to determine what type of shark attacked the man, Brust said. A sheriff's helicopter was circling the waters where the man was attacked, searching for the shark. If investigators find the shark, it would then be up to U.S. Fish and Game or another agency to trap it, Brust said.

Harbor seals were reported seen in the water before the attack, officials said. Sharks are known to prey on seals. Seals congregate at the La Jolla Cove south of Solana Beach.

Brust, who has been with the Sheriff's Department for 17 years, said he can't remember the last reported shark attack. There have been no recent shark sightings reported in the area where the man was killed, he said.

"We know it's the ocean and there are sharks out there, but no one can remember this ever happening and it's just a shock to the community," he said.

"Everybody's thinking about the movie 'Jaws.' "

• LA Times article

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