A child suffered serious injuries after he was bitten on the arm and leg by a shark in Nuka Hiva, French Polynesia, before being airlifted to the main hospital in Tahiti
A seven-year-old boy has been injured in a shark attack in French Polynesia, authorities have said.
The fire department of Nuka Hiva, the largest of the Marquesas Islands, said about 10 children were playing and jumping in Taioha’e Bay when the incident happened on Friday. The boy was bitten on the arm and leg, according to local officials.
A firefighter who helped the child with serious bite wounds said: “I’m 35 years old and this is the first time I’ve seen this. These were long and deep wounds.” He added: “It’s probably related to the fish carcasses that fishermen throw in this area. There are many sharks, such as blacktips, hammerheads, and lemon sharks.”
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The child was taken to the island’s small hospital before being airlifted to the French Polynesia hospital centre in Tahiti, which is located around 1,500km (930 miles) from Nuku Hiva. Shark attacks are rare in French Polynesia and are often linked to spearfishing, handling fish traps or feeding sharks, which is prohibited.
The waters of French Polynesia were declared a shark sanctuary in 2006 and since then, populations have remained relatively healthy. A study carried out by a team of researchers from the Paris Science et Lettres (PSL) Research University found that when sharks bite humans in the area, it is mostly due to self-defence.
The study, which reviewed over 60 years of shark bite data, found that in these cases, often triggered by harpooning, spear-gun strikes and rough handling, sharks typically inflict superficial wounds that are rarely fatal unless unfortunate circumstances, like arterial damage, occur. Last year, South African tourist Angus Kockott was bitten by a shark while freediving around the Gambier Island in French Polynesia.
The shark approached him from behind a reef and took a bite on his arm, damaging his nerves and tendons. He said: “Seeing that shark right before it bit me – that was a real ‘oh s**t’ moment. My first reaction was to get my knife used for cutting lines, and I just went for the shark as hard as I could.
“It was only a little knife, but I’m very glad I had it on that day. After it released my arm, I couldn’t see anything except for a huge pool of blood around me, but I managed to stand up on a reef. My arm was literally squirting blood – it looked like a stripped drumstick.”
Angus said he was in “immense pain” but eventually recovered after being treated, and said he didn’t blame the animal. The sailing enthusiast said: “It hasn’t put me off being in the ocean – I can’t wait until I can go back. My assumption was it was a territory thing – you can’t blame the animal.”