22-Year-Old Man Killed by Great White Shark While Fishing for Scallops Off Mexico Coast
The free-diving fisherman did not have a shark-repellent bracelet on at the time of the attack, according to authorities
A man has died after he was attacked by a shark while fishing off the coast of Mexico, authorities said.
A 22-year-old man was searching the water for scallops by Playa Tojahui on Dec. 29 when he was attacked by the animal, according to a Spanish-language announcement shared on X by the Sonora Civil Protection Unit.
The victim, identified in local reports as Víctor Alejandro Soto García, sustained a significant wound on his left leg from a bite believed to be delivered by a great white shark, per CBS News.
A group of people who were with the fisherman pulled him out of the water and attempted to revive him, but to no avail, according to Yahoo! News Australia.
Numerous fishermen helped bring the victim’s body back to a dock in Yavaros, a fishing port in Sonora, the Civil Protection Unit said.
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The victim was a free-diving fisherman who did not have a shark-repellent bracelet on at the time of the attack, the agency added.
Related: 1 Year After Deadly Great White Attack, 'Shark-Smart' Cape Cod Works to Prevent More Deaths
Shark repellents can drive away the animals by either emitting an unappealing smell or electrical pulses that make it difficult for the shark to sense their prey, CBS News reported.
This was at least the second, if not the third, deadly shark attack that occurred in Mexico in one month. On Dec. 2, a 26-year-old mother was reportedly attacked while swimming with her 5-year-old daughter off the coast of Melaque.
Two weeks later, a Belgian man died after he was reportedly attacked by either a shark or crocodile in the waters off Mexico's Pacific Coast resort of Zihuatanejo. A woman was also injured in the attack.
Sonora’s Civil Protection Unit is asking fishermen to take all proper precautions when in the water.
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