Sydney Beach Considers Lifting Ban on Drones After Serious Shark Attack
Authorities in Australia are considering lifting a ban on drones after a woman was critically injured in a shark attack at Sydney's Coogee Beach, which lies under the flight path for the city's main airport. A 35-year-old woman was bitten while swimming within the designated safety flags in crystal-clear water. Australia has seen three deaths from shark attacks in recent weeks.
A shark siren is triggered at Coogee Beach in Sydney...
A 35-year-old woman is pulled from the water after being attacked by a large shark... She was airlifted to hospital, where she is in critical condition with injuries to her arms and leg.
The attack happened just 30 meters from the shore, within the patrolled swimming area.
MARCEL GREEN, LEADER, FISHERIES SHARK PROGRAM (Sydney): "What we saw yesterday was quite a unique and different incident. So it wasn't murky water, it was crystal clear. She was swimming between the flags, doing everything right."
It's the fourth shark attack in Australia in recent weeks... the previous three have been fatal.
To keep an eye out for dangerous sharks, authorities are now considering lifting a ban on using drones at Coogee Beach... which is under the flight path of Sydney’s main airport.
TARA MORIARTY, NEW SOUTH WALES AGRICULTURE MINISTER (Sydney): "We're of course sharing the ocean with these wild animals and there is no perfect solution here, but I have asked the department to provide me with some urgent advice on how we can use more of that technology, have more drones in the skies, giving people some comfort and keeping an eye out for sharks and shark activity on our beaches. Nothing is off the table in terms of how we deal with sharks going forward."
Besides drones... a group of Australian researchers has also been working on a wetsuit material that can reduce the harm caused by a shark bite.
CHARLIE HUVENEERS, MARINE AND COASTAL RESEARCH CONSORTIUM, FLINDERS UNIVERSITY (Adelaide, Australia): "What we've found, from talking to medical doctors that have dealt with shark-bite victims, is that the main trauma or the cause of death is not crushing injuries, but it is blood loss or the loss of a limb or tissue loss. So if we can reduce that type of injuries, if we can reduce blood loss, we can actually save life, but also reduce that recovery time as well."
Increased use of drones and other technology may help make the waters safer for beachgoers... and authorities say they’ll consider any measures available to them... while warning that there is no perfect way to ward off shark attacks – even when the person in the water does everything right.
