Sharm El-Sheikh Shark Attacks December 6, 2010 by lukesheppard

As I am sure you will have heard on the news yesterday a German women has been tragically killed by a shark whilst snorkelling off the coast of Sharm el-Sheikh. The death of the un-named German lady comes after four other people were injured earlier this week in the Sharm area. Last week the waters off Sharm el-Sheikh were closed for all watersport activities but re-opened after local authorities has supposedly caught and killed the two sharks involved with the previous attacks.

However, in various press releases conservation groups say that the bite marks on the victims compared to the sharks caught did not match. Showing they were not the same fish. In light of this incident the waters have again been closed until authorities can deal with the problem. This death has sparked some serious negative media coverage and there are fears that it will have a serious impact on tourism in the area. 

The question is, should it put you off diving in Sharm el-Sheikh? We personally think, no it shouldn’t.  Here is some reasoning behind this: According to the ISAF (International Shark Attack File) the authority worldwide on Shark Attacks there has only been an average of 5 deaths per year worldwide since 2000 (66 non-fatal attacks). This is less than half the people who are killed each year on the golf course by stray golf balls at an average of 12 deaths per year.

Essentially what we are saying is that all sports have an element of risk and you should always be careful and follow and safety guidelines to minimise that risk. But should you stop going to Sharm el-Sheikh because of the recent shark attacks? We think no. If you have a different opinion on the matter we would love to hear it. Please leave a response using the comments section below.