4HolerPoler
17th May 2007, 00:24
Good show! :ok:
Five people had a close encounter with a Great White shark while surfing at Robberg Beach in Plettenberg Bay on Thursday, said the National Sea Rescue Institute. NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said the 3.5m shark was spotted by Glen Brown, who had been flying a honeymoon couple and another passenger over the beach in his Robertson 44 helicopter. When Brown saw the shark moving closer to the five, who were surfing about 50 metres offshore, he flew down to try to warn them of the shark's presence, said Lambinon. Realising that the shark was now less then five metres away from two of the surfers, Brown flew his helicopter in between the shark and the surfers to act as a diversion while hand-signalling the surfers to swim to shore. At first, the surfers, who were unaware of the danger they were in, thought Brown had been just waving to them.
They only realised the grave danger they were in when they saw the passengers in the helicopter "waving like mad". "The shark then began swimming away. Glen said he continued to monitor the shark as it moved away until it was out of sight and lost beneath the sea's surface," said Lambinon. The honeymoon couple, Johan and Candice Fouche of Tableview in Cape Town, who also happen to be professional photographers, took pictures of the shark to show the surfers how close the Great White had been to them. Lambinon appealed to bathers, surfers, paddlers and boaters to be cautious along the coast of Plettenberg Bay as there had been an increase in shark activity in the area.
In the UK the CAA would have been after him for low flying, operating the helicopter out of safe autorotational distance of the shore and reckless endangerment of protected species.
Five people had a close encounter with a Great White shark while surfing at Robberg Beach in Plettenberg Bay on Thursday, said the National Sea Rescue Institute. NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said the 3.5m shark was spotted by Glen Brown, who had been flying a honeymoon couple and another passenger over the beach in his Robertson 44 helicopter. When Brown saw the shark moving closer to the five, who were surfing about 50 metres offshore, he flew down to try to warn them of the shark's presence, said Lambinon. Realising that the shark was now less then five metres away from two of the surfers, Brown flew his helicopter in between the shark and the surfers to act as a diversion while hand-signalling the surfers to swim to shore. At first, the surfers, who were unaware of the danger they were in, thought Brown had been just waving to them.
They only realised the grave danger they were in when they saw the passengers in the helicopter "waving like mad". "The shark then began swimming away. Glen said he continued to monitor the shark as it moved away until it was out of sight and lost beneath the sea's surface," said Lambinon. The honeymoon couple, Johan and Candice Fouche of Tableview in Cape Town, who also happen to be professional photographers, took pictures of the shark to show the surfers how close the Great White had been to them. Lambinon appealed to bathers, surfers, paddlers and boaters to be cautious along the coast of Plettenberg Bay as there had been an increase in shark activity in the area.
In the UK the CAA would have been after him for low flying, operating the helicopter out of safe autorotational distance of the shore and reckless endangerment of protected species.