Isla del Coco National Park is about 360 yards from Costa Rica’s Pacific coast. It is a picturesque tourist attraction that is available year round, but recent events in a site called Manuelita gave this island a negative reputation.
This last Thursday morning, a woman whose surname is Bhandari was diving with a group of tourists when a female tiger shark attacked them. The shark got a hold of Bhandari’s lower limbs and wounded her before anyone could intervene.
The diving instructor, whose last name is Jimenez, saw the shark approach but did not succeed in driving it away. The predator lashed out at the instructor while others tried further tactics to scare the ocean beast away from the boat.
A male passenger on the boat tried to fight off the shark as the divers surfaced with Bhandari. When they finally scared the shark away, Bhandari had already sustained severe damage in both of her legs and was rushed to get treated.
She was treated by National Park officials and other medics who headed over to the oceanside location in response to the incident. Sadly, it was too late by the time they started to treat her, and Bandhari succumbed to her wounds.
Five different tiger shark sightings have been recorded in the Isla del Coco National Park since 2012, but Thursday’s is the first fatal attack to have taken place in the area. Tiger sharks are one of the most dangerous shark species, weighing up to 2,000 pounds and can reach up to 15 feet in length.
Only the great white shark has more recorded attacks on people than the tiger shark. Unlike their counterpart, however, tiger sharks are unlikely to swim away after the first bite, holding onto their pray until being sure of death.
This article was inspired by ABC NEWS // American tourist killed by tiger shark in Costa Rica, authorities say