Point Reyes Light - October 14, 2004
Shark attack closes two beaches
By Jacob Resneck
Point Reyes National Seashore visitors this week had to keep out of the water at Drakes and Limantour beaches following a shark attack on a surfer Sunday morning.
Unless more sharks are spotted at the beaches, the park will allow people back in the water on Saturday. Visitors were free to use the beaches this week, and many people did.
The surfer, Paul de Jung of San Rafael was several hundred yards from shore on his surfboard when a shark, estimated to be between six and eight feet long, bit him on the leg.
He later said that after the attack he elbowed the shark near an eye, and for whatever reason the shark lost interest in him and left.
De Jung paddled to shore and called 911 from a cell phone he had on the beach. A family member this week said de Jung is recovering in Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and is not yet ready to comment publicly on the attack. "He’ll talk when he’s ready," she said. A Sonoma County Sheriff’s helicopter transported de Jung to the hospital.
¡Ataque de Tiburon!
In response to the attack, the Park Service posted bilingual signs at Limantour and Drakes beaches, warning visitors to stay out of the water, but not everyone has heeded the warning.
"I’ve been coming here my whole life, swimming here since I was a kid," said a 57-year-old San Anselmo man as he walked to his car following a swim at Limantour Tuesday. "Sure, [the shark attack] gives you pause, makes you think, but you just got to respect them and respect Mother Nature."
A 42-year-old Inverness woman, who was at Limantour two hours after the attack, said she didn’t see any warning signs posted yet and noted people were boogie boarding, oblivious to the danger.
"I saw some people go talk to the boogie boarders, and then they got out of the water," she said, "but it wasn’t until later that evening that we heard there was even a shark attack. I was later told that rangers were warning people at the main entrance to Limantour, but there was nothing that day at the secondary entrance where we came in."
‘Stay out of the water’
Ranger John Golda noted the National Seashore is not discouraging people from enjoying the beaches, but "we’re asking people to stay out of the water."
Restaurateur Jonne LeMieux, who runs the Drakes Beach Café, said that the gorgeous weather on the coast hasn’t deterred people from visiting Drakes Beach. "Tuesday there were lots of people. It has been beautiful out here," she said.