Killer Mountain Claims More Victims in a Month Than Great White Sharks Have Done in 4 Years

Table Mountain may seem like a benignthat there is no real increase in the incidence of
playground for the hundreds of city dwellers whoshark attacks along the South African coastline,
live in her shadow, but don't be fooled - sheas only 4 fatalities occurred between 2004 and
claims more victims in a month than shark2007.
attacks have in four, long years.What is shocking, however, is that statistics
Recent deadly attacks by Great White sharks incollated on the South African Mountain Accidents
the waters off the Cape coast causeddatabase (SAMA) tell a very different story about
unprecedented panic and stirred uninformedour so-called 'benevolent' mountain. From the
fishermen and other inhabitants of the city intobeginning of 2007 to the present there have been
the hell bent capturing and destroying of as many8 deaths on Table mountain and 50% (or 4) of
of these beautiful creatures as they could laythese deaths occurred in a single month - that of
their hands on.August 2008.
The shark attacks in 2003/04 were particularlySo when you consider the millions of people who
spine chilling: an elderly woman was attackedenjoy our beaches and adjoining surf virtually
relatively close to the beach in Fish Hoek, a youngevery single day of the summer, sharks are not
boy lost his leg in the surf of Muizenberg, and aas big a danger as they are made out to be.
surfer was decimated by an enormous specimenHowever, if danger warnings are the order of the
whilst surfing at Noordhoek . These popularday, be cautioned about that mountain - 21 people
beaches are all packed with holiday makers andlost their lives to its rocky jaws between 2004
local residents during the summer.and 2007.
Reliable data from the Natal sharks board indicates