Black December

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Great white shark scavenging whale carcass.

Black December refers to at least nine shark attacks on humans causing six deaths that occurred along the coast of KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa, from December 18, 1957 to April 5, 1958.[1]

Perfect storm

In December 1957 several key factors occurred simultaneously to attract sharks to the Durban area, including: (1) whaling ships operating in the area; (2) rivers had flooded and washed livestock into the Indian Ocean and made the river deltas murky; and (3) recent resort development had increased the number of tourists swimming off the beaches.[2] Adding to the confusion was the lack of adequate shark research and the knowledge to prevent shark attacks in 1957.[2]

Attack victims

NameAgeDateSpeciesLocation Comments
Fay Jones Bester 28 1958-04-05 Unknown Uvongo Fatal attack, while surfing.[3][4]
Nicholaas Badenhorst 29 1958-04-03 Unknown Port Edward Fatal attack, arm severed above elbow abdomen & leg bitten, while swimming.[3][5]
Derryck Garth Prinsloo 42 1958-01-04 Great white shark Scottburgh Fatal attack, mauled below waist femoral artery severed, while standing.[3][6]
Zulu male -- 1958 Unknown MaKakatana River Fatal attack, right leg severed above knee, while fishing.[3][7]
Julia Painting 14 1957-12-30 Unknown Margate Non-fatal attack, left arm severed torso bitten thigh lacerated many abrasions, while standing.[3][8]
Donald Webster 20 1957-12-26 Unknown Port Edward Non-fatal attack, Lacerations on head and neck, while skindiving.[3][9]
Vernon James Berry 23 1957-12-23 Unknown Margate Fatal attack, right arm broken & stripped of flesh left hand severed above wrist lower abdomen buttocks & thigh bitten, while floating.[3][10]
Allan Green 15 1957-12-20 Unknown Uvongo Fatal attack, multiple severe injuries, while standing.[3][11]
Robert Wherley 16 1957-12-18 Unknown Karridene Non-fatal attack, left leg severed at knee part of left thigh removed, while body surfing.[3][12]

Attempted solutions

Tourists fled the Durban area during Black December causing a devastating impact on the local economy.[13] The local authorities desperately made attempts to protect swimmers and surfers from sharks.[1] These attempts included enclosures built from wooden poles and netting; however, both were ineffective and were destroyed by the surf.[1] A South African Navy frigate dropped depth charges causing few shark fatalities and attracted many more sharks into the area that feasted on the dead fish.[1]

KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board

As a result of Black December the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board previously the Natal Sharks Board and Natal Anti-Shark Measures Board was formed in 1962.[14][15][16] The organisations mandate is to maintain shark nets and drum lines at 38 places, along 320 km of coastline off the KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa, to protect bathers and surfers from shark attacks.[14]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 National Geographic: South Africa Rethinks Use of Shark Nets
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 IMDb: Killer Sharks: The Attacks of Black December
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Stop Shark Cage Diving
  4. ↑ GoShark: Fay Jones Bester
  5. ↑ GoShark: Nicholaas Badenhorst
  6. ↑ GoShark: Derryck Garth Prinsloo
  7. ↑ GoShark: Zulu male, Young
  8. ↑ GoShark: Julia Painting
  9. ↑ GoShark: Donald Webster
  10. ↑ GoShark: Vernon James Berry
  11. ↑ GoShark: Allan Green
  12. ↑ GoShark: Robert Wherley
  13. ↑ Gulf News: Keeping great whites at bay
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "History of protection against shark attack in KZN". KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board. Retrieved 30 January 2011. 
  15. ↑ "An overview of the KZN Sharks Board". KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board. Retrieved 30 January 2011. 
  16. ↑ Africa Geographic: Shark nets - the real killers of the sea?
Topics
Taxonomy
Human
interaction
  • Category
  • Portal


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.