Lucky divers survive great white shark attack in YouTube clip
by Stevie Smith - Dec 11 2008, 13:00
Great white shark attack caught on camera. Image: YouTube/NBC.
A pair of diving enthusiasts observing shark activity from within a protective cage off the coast of Mexico have survived a bowel-loosening brush with razor-toothed danger after they entertained something of an unwelcome visitor.
Amazingly captured on film by one of the divers, the supposed protection of the cage was abruptly shattered when a thundering great white shark slammed headlong into it and tore through the bars, leaving its occupants dodging possible death.
The incident and its accompanying video clip, as reported by American broadcaster NBC, has been posted to YouTube and shows the 15-foot shark casually snapping at a bait line before then suddenly accelerating forward and clashing heavily with the diving cage.
The shaken divers were pulled to safety aboard their Searcher tourist expedition support boat after the shark thrashed its way free and took the front of the cage with it.
Emerging unscathed from their ordeal, the divers were composed enough to return to the water around 15 minutes later and even commented that the onrushing shark was not targeting them specifically but rather swam blindly into the cage by accident.
“When we said ‘you can get face-to-face with the ultimate predator’ this is not what we had in mind,” commented the shark watch tour company after the shock destruction of equipment only a few years old.
The company, which charges $3,000 USD per person for the opportunity to experience that “face-to-face” excitement, has said it intends to upgrade its protective cages as a result of the attack.
One of the NBC anchors on the YouTube clip perfectly encapsulated the intensity of the perilous moment for at least one of the divers by saying: “I got a feeling that wetsuit won’t get used again.”
Click below to see the video clip.
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