A kayaker was taken to a hospital Sunday after a shark he caught bit him twice off Paradise Cove in Malibu. Los Angeles County firefighters treated it as a fishing accident, not an unprovoked attack, and the beach stayed open.
ABC7 reported that the Los Angeles County Fire Department got the call at 8:32 a.m. in the 28200 block of West Pacific Coast Highway. The department first logged it as a shark attack, then said it was a fishing accident. Officials said the man was fishing from a kayak about a half-mile offshore when he hooked the shark. As he tried to release it, the shark bit him and knocked him out of the kayak, then bit him a second time. Firefighters took him to a hospital. His name and condition were not released.
NBC Los Angeles reported that county lifeguard Alex Buford placed the call closer to 7:30 a.m. and said the man had brought the shark onto the kayak. Buford said the shark bit him, he let it go, and it came back, knocked him off the boat and bit his leg again.
People on a nearby fishing boat pulled him from the water. Buford said the shark is believed to have been a shortfin mako, a fast offshore species that commonly grows to 6 or 7 feet. He said makos usually stay in deeper water and that he did not see a reason to warn swimmers in the shallows.
Fire officials told the station they did not close the beach because the bite happened during fishing.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Tell your Smart Speaker to "PLAY 1080 KRLD"
Sign Up to receive our KRLD Insider Newsletter for more news
Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
