Hawaii tourist bitten by shark day after actor Tamayo Perry’s deadly shark attack
The two shark attacks this week are the fifth and sixth for the Hawaiian Islands this year. Four of the encounters happened on Oahu. Tamayo Perry's death was the ninth fatal shark attack in Hawaiian waters since 1995.
Noted surfer and Hawaii lifeguard Tamayo Perry killed in shark attack
KTVU journalist Nikki Schenfeld reports from Hawaii's North Shore where Ocean Rescue lifeguard and surfer Tamayo Perry was killed in a shark attack over the weekend. Perry was a notable figure in Oahu, famous for his pipeline surfing and acting career.
WAIKOLOA, Hawaii – A 20-year-old visitor was likely bit by a shark in Waikoloa, Hawaii on Monday, according to local police, marking the second shark attack in two days in the islands after the fatal incident with North Shore lifeguard and surfer Tamayo Perry on Sunday.
Hawaii Island police said they responded to a possible shark attack at Anaeho‘omalu Bay in Waikoloa around 5:30 p.m.
The 20-year-old visitor from Romania told officers he was swimming about 15 to 20 feet offshore when he felt a pain in his right foot. He found lacerations on the top and bottom of his foot, and it was bleeding profusely. Medical personnel on the scene said the injuries were consistent with a shark bite.
Hawaii Fire Department medics took the victim to Queen's North Hawaii Community Hospital for treatment.
2022 FILE PHOTO: Anaeho‘omalu Beach, sometimes called Waikoloa Beach, is on the South Kohala coast on the Big Island of Hawaii. (Photo by John S Lander/LightRocket via Getty Images)
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Police said there are no plans to close Anaeho‘omalu Bay, home to many Big Island vacation resorts.
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The shark bite came during the same week Perry, a well-known surfer and actor, was killed in a shark attack while surfing near Goat Island off the island of Oahu.
Perry, 49, was paddling out on Sunday afternoon when he was bitten, according to Honolulu Ocean Safety.
Perry's fatal shark attack is rare in Hawaii. According to Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), shark bites are "very rare," with about three or four per year.
According to the DLNR incident list, this week's two shark encounters are the fifth and sixth for the Hawaiian Islands this year. The three other bites happened on Oahu.
FILE PHOTO: Tamayo Perry of Hawaii in action during round three of the Billabong Pro trials May 4, 2003 at Teahupoo, Tahiti, French Polynesia. (Photo by Steve Robertson/ Getty Images)
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One of the victims was swimming with sharks about 3 miles offshore on June 7 when they were bitten on their thigh, forearm and hand, according to the DLNR. This was considered a provoked incident, which is when a human initiates physical contact with a shark, according to the International Shark Attack File.
Last year, there were eight shark bites in Hawaii, including one fatal shark attack in Maui on December 30. FOX 2 reports surfer Jason Carter, 39, was bitten in the waters in Paia Bay. He died at the hospital.
Perry was the ninth person to be killed in a shark attack in Hawaiian waters since Hawaii's DLNR began keeping records in 1995.