We finally got what we wanted: Gansbaai is on the map! The world is a flutter because of what happened last Thursday in our very own town of Gansbaai. Twitter, Facebook, Google and YouTube has been flooded with posts about the “terrifying” event. For those of you who don’t know yet, during a Shark Cage Diving excursion a Great White Shark decided to take a closer look at some divers. Unfortunately it was a little too close for comfort.
The video clip of the event starts off with a bird’s eye view of the cage in which the divers are waiting anxiously for the shark to come around. You spot the shark heading for the seal-like decoy, but then veers off and heads for the cage. The shark heads straight for the cage and then straight into the cage! The gap left open for the divers to see through is just big enough for the shark to pop his head through. Realizing it’s stuck, the shark starts thrashing around trying to dislodge itself. Meanwhile the diver (who’s spot has now been replaced by the head of the Great White) has ducked sideways underneath the water to get away. The other passengers of the boat and the camera man screams while the shark wriggles it way loose.
In the end, the screams die down and the shark swims away. The divers emerge unscathed albeit with jangled nerves. We learn that the diver the shark headed for was a newlywed man, known only as Roger.
The world is still buzzing about this extraordinary occurrence last week. The video most likely beating the sun in going around the world more than once in 24 hrs. But as such, the world stands divided. Some saying it was a thrilling experience and others swearing never to cage dive in their lives. But this truly was an extraordinary event, sharks are just naturally curious and only attack humans when they mistake them for their favourite prey: seals. We might never know what went through this shark’s mind on Thursday.
One thing is for sure though, this will be a topic of discussion for weeks, even maybe months to come. We’ll keep you updated on any other wild activities from our local sharky friends.
