Fake news gone viral: Propeller injury falsely labelled as shark attack in Durban
Cars kill 1.25 million people annually. Aeroplanes kill 283 people per year, while toasters kill 800 people. Sharks killed five people last year. More than 100 million sharks are killed by people every year.
A video shared on Facebook has caused unnecessary fear and panic among the general public as it was incorrectly labelled “Young KZN man mauled by shark.”
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It has since been confirmed by officials that the person was in fact injured by a boat propeller after accidentally being too close to the back of the boat when it was launching.
“It was a boating incident and not a shark attack,” confirms Jace Govender of ASFN Fishing, who was in communication with people on the beach on Sunday when the incident took place. “Thankfully the propeller didn’t sever any of his vital organs or arteries and he is on the mend.”
He also added that “people need to stop giving sharks a bad name.”
If a shark attack were to occur at or near any of KZN’s popular beaches, the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board are swiftly called upon and strict protocols are followed. The first step would be to ascertain if the incident took place at one of the shark-net “protected beaches.
The next step would be to decide on the necessary response (such as a temporary ban on bathing) and then to try and establish the species of shark involved.
In this case the conclusion was that it was not a shark bite, yet there was no commentary on this video pointing this out and it has already caused massive damage to the reputation of sharks. This incident, added Jace, was an example of how negatively sharks are represented in the media and the dangers of sharing information which is not true on social media.
“The unfortunate reality is that we have to undo years of fear that movies like Jaws have instilled. The Shark Attack Campaign has taken the opportunity to educate people about the misconceptions on sharks. Over and above that, the campaign aims to turn that fear into reverence for these often misunderstood and amazing creatures, and to show South Africans that a large number of them are endemic (unique) to our waters, which is something we should be proud of,” adds Ruth Mthembu, Marketing Manager for WILDOCEANS and the Shark Attack Campaign.
Cars kill 1.25 million people annually. Aeroplanes kill 283 people per year, while toasters kill 800 people. Sharks killed 5 people last year. More than 100 million sharks are killed by people every year.
Our fear is misguided.
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