In San Andrés, there have been a number of reports of people trying to hunt and kill tiger sharks after an Italian tourist was bitten by one and eventually lost his life. The archipelago's environmental corporation, Coralina, requested the support of national and international experts to capture the two specimens that live in the protected area and move them to preserve their lives.
It all started last Friday, March 18, when Antonio Roseto Degli Abruzzi, 56, was bitten by a tiger shark after diving into the area known as 'La Piscinita'. After the incident, the foreigner was transferred to Clarence Lynd Newball Hospital, where he arrived without vital signs.
It is important to note that Roseto was warned not to swim in that area, since the presence of sharks had been detected, which temporarily arrived in the island's waters due to a wave of migration.
Despite this, the community of San Andrés showed great indignation at the events, so much so that a group of people organized with the aim of claiming “revenge” for Roseto's death and sacrifice one of the two tiger sharks that are in the area. The Navy has prevented several attempts to hunt the specimens; however, last Sunday the death of a nurse shark was recorded.
Coralina rejected the facts related to the nurse shark, assuring that this species “does not pose any danger to humans”. They also pointed out that they will go to the last consequences to find those responsible.
The transfer of tiger sharks
The environmental corporation indicated in a press release that they decided to ask for the support of national and international shark experts to ensure the protection and preservation of the tiger shark specimens found on the southwestern side of the island of San Andres in the vicinity of the Pox Hole sector.
The experts will carry out the maneuvers to capture and relocate the specimens away from the coast of the Seaflower Biosphere Reserve, where they are currently located. In this way, they will no longer “pose a potential danger to locals and visitors” and the lives of sharks will be safeguarded.
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“As they are large species, special training is required, so the actions will be carried out by the corporation's staff with international support,” said the environmental entity. The experts will arrive on the island next Monday or Tuesday. “They bring satellite tags that will be placed on the copies to be followed up later,” he added.
The corporation recalled that sharks that inhabit the archipelago are protected species and hunting them represents an environmental crime. “The penalties range from fines to pretrial detention,” Coralina said.
“Local Authorities such as Coralina, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries of the Departmental Government, National Navy and National Police, within the framework of compliance with the ruling of popular action that obliges us to care for sharks, are taking appropriate actions to safeguard the life of species and those who frequent the zone”, the statement reads.
The entity also asked the inhabitants to protect the species found in their natural habitat and invited citizens to contact 123, in which case they saw illegal fishing activities for sharks, rays, chimeras, protected species in the territory. In turn, he called on the community not to throw food debris into the sea that could affect different species.
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