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07/25/2008 Kaori Fiack ( Hawaii )

Worldwide Reported Shark Attack Related Incidents in 2008.
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sharkbait
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Re: 07/25/2008 Kaori Fiack ( Hawaii )

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Woman survives shark attack off Makaha with 'chunk' out of arm

2 Makaha condo workers say snorkeler was calm after being bit on the arm

By Will Hoover and Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writers
Roger Debebar, left, and Anthony Chapman downplayed their efforts and said the shark-bite victim "saved herself."
Roger Debebar, left, and Anthony Chapman downplayed their efforts and said the shark-bite victim "saved herself."
kaorirescuers.jpeg (24.03 KiB) Viewed 19029 times
Roger Debebar and Anthony Chapman don't claim they did anything heroic yesterday when an injured and bleeding woman approached them around 8:40 a.m. near the edge of the beach at the Hawaiian Princess condominiums and spoke three words:


"Help, please," said the woman, who had been snorkeling moments earlier. "Shark."

But Bryan Cheplic, spokesman for the city's emergency service department, said the two men's quick actions may have made all the difference in the state's first shark attack of the year.

"They used towels and blankets to control the bleeding and save her life, essentially," he said. "Nowadays, nobody wants to get involved. And the main point here is that these people got involved and they helped her."

Chapman, 49, said the woman was "bleeding bad and she had a chunk taken out of her arm."
Law enforcement officers off Mauna Lahilahi Beach Park in Makaha look for the shark that attacked a female snorkeler. A large tiger shark was spotted about 10 minutes after the woman was injured.
Law enforcement officers off Mauna Lahilahi Beach Park in Makaha look for the shark that attacked a female snorkeler. A large tiger shark was spotted about 10 minutes after the woman was injured.
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Ten minutes after the woman was injured, a lifeguard on a Yamaha Waverunner and officers in the Honolulu Police Department's helicopter spotted what appeared to be "a very large shark, approximately 16 feet in length," Cheplic said.

They tracked the shark for another five to 10 minutes before it swam to deeper water, he said.

Randy Honebrink, investigative shark resource coordinator for the state Department of Land and Natural Resources' Division of Aquatic Resources, said it was the state's first shark attack of the year.

He said the animal that was spotted was a large tiger shark.

"It was big," Honebrink said. "Whether it was 16 feet or not, I don't know. We also don't know if that was the same shark that bit the person."

However, Honebrink said sharks usually swim alone.

The shark's presence off Lahilahi Point prompted city lifeguards to clear the ocean one mile in each direction and post warning signs along the beach.

The woman, described as being in her mid-40s, was taken to The Queen's Medical Center in serious condition with a wound to her forearm, as police and lifeguards kept an eye on a shark swimming about 100 yards offshore.
'saved herself'

Debebar, 39, of Ma'ili and Chapman, 49, of Makaha — both maintenance employees with the Hawaiian Princess — said the least excited person on the scene was the victim.

"She was the calmest person I've ever seen who's just been bitten by a shark," Debebar said. "She actually saved herself. She dragged herself out of the water after being attacked and let us know she'd been hurt. We just dialed 911."

In addition to contacting authorities, Chapman said he fashioned a tourniquet out of a rag to stop the bleeding before Honolulu firefighters and EMS personnel arrived minutes later.

"She calmly told me to ease the pressure on the tourniquet every five minutes," Chapman said. "I kind of looked at her, and she said, 'I'm a doctor.' The lady did not complain once. And by the time I tied the tourniquet, I could hear the fire department and ambulance people coming. They were here quick."

While paramedics tended her wound, Debebar escorted a lifeguard and a police officer to the roof where they could clearly see the tiger shark circling offshore.

Meanwhile, Chapman had headed toward Lahilahi Point to alert the woman's husband, who had been surfing off the point and didn't know what happened.

"Her only concern the whole time was her husband," he said.

Cheplic said that after the woman was taken to the hospital, her condition was upgraded from serious to stable.

ANother sighting?

Authorities said there was another, unconfirmed shark sighting in the same area in the afternoon and that the shark warning signs would remain in place at least through midday today.

Cheplic said the HFD helicopter would fly over Lahilahi Point this morning. He said lifeguards would assess the situation after the flyover to decide if the warning signs should come down.

Until then, swimmers and surfers will be advised to stay out of the water there.
Map of Attack Location
Map of Attack Location
kaorimap.jpeg (31.02 KiB) Viewed 19029 times
Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com and Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.

http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/ ... LNEWSFRONT
sharkbait
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Re: 07/25/2008 Kaori Fiack ( Hawaii )

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Apparent Shark Attack at West Oahu Beach
By Ron Mizutani
Signs posted after Hawaii Shark Attack
Signs posted after Hawaii Shark Attack
sharkattackbeach.jpg (10.97 KiB) Viewed 19030 times
Emergency officials cleared a two-mile stretch of shoreline in west Oahu Friday after a 44-year-old woman suffered an apparent shark bite. Officials say a 16-foot tiger shark was spotted in the area. Sources say the victim is Kaori Fiack who was snorkeling 50 yards offshore near Lahilahi Point, about a mile from Makaha Beach.

It was just after 8:45 when Siale Hivali saw a woman struggling to swim outside the Hawaiian Princess condominium.

"She won't even use her hands -- swimming," said Hivali.

The woman made it to shore alone and approached Anthony Chapman. "She was real calm and everything so I thought she just wanted to come in -- she said help please," he said.

That's when he saw blood pouring out of her right forearm. "All she said was shark," said Chapman.

Sources say the woman is 44-year-old Kaori Fiack who is staying at the condominium.Her husband was surfing near the point unaware of what happened.

"When I was putting on the tourniquet she said you have to release this every five minutes and I kind of gave her a look like -- how you know that and she informed me she was a doctor," said Chapman

As emergency crews worked on the victim, attention switched to the ocean where a police helicopter and lifeguards searched the area.

"He spotted what appeared to be adult shark -- approximately 16 feet in length," said Emergency Medical Services spokesman Bryan Cheplic.

"The shark was a humongous shark.">said maintenance supervisor Roger Debebar. "The shark was just as big the helicopter."

Many got a birds eye view of the massive creature as it circled the bay.

"If you can see the dark reef right where about where the light sand area is," said Debebar. "He went in the channel over there came around came right inside there and went back out."

"Hey guys we're going to ask you to stay out of the water today okay," said a lifeguard to beachgoers at Lahilahi.

Lifeguards posted shark sighting signs and cleared the ocean, one mile in each direction. including Makaha Beach. The woman suffered serious injuries and was take to the Queen's Medical Center.

"The mouthpiece if I got bitten by a shark -- this mouthpiece would have been been gone," said Debebar. "She must have been calm like a butterfly."

Witnesses believe her medical background kept her calm. Emergency crews believe bystanders did the rest.

"Thanks to them they basically saved this woman's life," said Cheplic.

"Anything I can do to help -- I'm glad I was there to help," said Chapman.

Late Friday another shark was spotted near keaau beach. crews will keep signs posted tomorrow.


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sharkbait
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Re: 07/25/2008 Kaori Fiack ( Hawaii )

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Shark attack reported in Makaha
Star-Bulletin Staff
citydesk@starbulletin.com


Emergency officials are investigating an apparent shark bite in Makaha this morning.
About 8:42 a.m., emergency officials received a call about a woman who was injured in the ocean off the Hawaiian Princess at Makaha Beach condo on Lahilahi Street.

Police believe the injury may have been caused by a shark. The victim was taken by ambulance to the Queen's Medical Center. There was no information on the her condition.

Officers in a police helicopter spotted a large shark near the shoreline just after the attack. Ocean Safety officers then cleared people from the ocean within a mile on either side of the apparent attack, said Emergency Services spokesman Bryan Cheplic. They also posted signs warning beachgoers that a shark had been sighted.

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sharkbait
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07/25/2008 Kaori Fiack ( Hawaii )

Post by sharkbait »

Shark Attack in Hawaii off Lahilahi Beach, about one mile south of Makaha Beach a female snorkeler.
***

Shark suspected in Leeward attack swims to open water

By Dan Nakaso

A female snorkeler suffered "what appears to be an apparent shark bite" this morning while swimming off of Lahilahi Beach, about one mile south of Makaha Beach, said Bryan Cheplic, spokesman for the city's emergency services department.


The woman — described as being in her mid-40s — was taken to The Queen's Medical Center in serious condition with a wound to her forearm as police and lifeguards kept an eye on a shark that was swimming about 50 yards off shore.

A lifeguard on a Yamaha Waverunner and officers in the Honolulu Police Department's helicopter spotted what appeared to "be a very large shark approximately 16 feet in length" 10 minutes after the woman was injured, Cheplic said.

They tracked the shark for another five to 10 minutes before it swam out to deeper water, Cheplic said.

"Whether this was the creature that was guilty of the attack or not, we're not able to verify," Cheplic said.

Lifeguards cleared the ocean one mile in each direction and put up signs warning swimmers to stay out of the water, Cheplic said.

The woman was snorkeling in front of the Hawaiian Princess condominiums when she was injured around 8:45 a.m., Cheplic said. She made it to shore on her own and bystanders helped control her bleeding, he said.

"i want to thank the bystanders from the condo for acting quickly and for their quick thinking," Cheplic said. "They used towels and blankets to control the bleeding and saved her life, essentially."

Lifeguards will reassess the situation tomorrow before deciding whether to take down the warning signs, Cheplic said.

Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.


http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/ ... LNEWSFRONT
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