Snorkeler Attacked by Tiger Shark After Locals Dumped Dead Sheep Into the Water
The grim encounter was caught on camera.
While sharks are some of the most feared animals in all of the world, they are actually much less dangerous than dogs. According to the Florida Museum of Natural History's International Shark Attack File, in 2021 there were 73 unprovoked shark attacks and nine unprovoked shark bite fatalities. To put that in perspective, in 2019, there were 46 human fatalities as a result of dog attacks, in the United States alone. However, shark attacks do happen. This week a man in Egypt was attacked and killed by a shark, and the details are chilling.
According to The UK Times, a Russian expatriate was swimming off the coast of a Red Sea beach resort close to Dreams Beach in Hurghada. He encountered a tiger shark, who attacked and killed him.
According to locals, tiger sharks have been attracted to the area where dead sheep had been dumped in the water before an Islamic holiday. The animals are "sacrificed" as part of religious beliefs.
Vladimir Popov, 23, had been living in Egypt for several months at the time of the attack. He was going for a swim while the hotel staff started screaming to get out of the water, as a shark's fin could be seen approaching.
The grim encounter was caught on camera by a beachgoer. Popov can be seen struggling with the shark, trying to get away. He even cried to his father, who was sitting on the beach.
"It's eating his remains now," one witness who filmed the attack can be heard saying. After his body was pulled underneath the water, blood stains remained on the surface of the ocean.
According to the tourism ministry, the shark was captured by divers. Officials plan on conducting studies to try and understand why the shark attacked the man. Swimming and all other water activities will be put on hold for the next few days.
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In July 2022, two other shark attack deaths occurred in the Red Sea. A week before the Eid al-Adha, an Austrian and a Romanian woman were killed while swimming at a beach.
