A new drama. In New Caledonia, a 59-year-old Australian tourist died on Sunday after a shark attack that occurred 150 meters from a beach in Noumea, the town hall said in a press release. The victim was swimming near the pontoon of this very busy beach in the capital, when he was bitten several times by the shark.
The 50-year-old was “rescued by two boaters who were nearby,” said Yves Dupas, the public prosecutor to AFP. The emergency services found a serious bite on the leg, as well as on the level of his two arms. Despite the cardiac massage practiced upon his return to the beach, the man succumbed to his injuries.
A panic on the beach
The attack occurred while a large number of people were in the water, sparking panic on the Château-Royal beach to the south of the town. The area was immediately evacuated.
The mayor of the City of Nouméa, Sonia Lagarde (Renaissance), ordered the closure of the vast majority of the town’s beaches and the launch of a campaign to capture tiger sharks and bull sharks, jointly with the province South of New Caledonia.
The beach was however supervised
Drones were also deployed by the municipal services, which made it possible to observe two sharks in the area, according to the police. Operations were suspended at nightfall and will resume Monday morning. An investigation was opened to find the causes of death according to the prosecution. “The beach was monitored by certified persons and the attack took place inside the marked area,” said the prosecutor.
Already on January 29, a 49-year-old swimmer was seriously injured after being bitten by a shark, a hundred meters off the same beach of the Château-Royal. Five days later, a surfer was charged by a shark, this time without injury.
These three attacks occurred in the space of three weeks, during which swimming and nautical activities were prohibited for seventeen days against only four days of bathing authorization.