CANADIAN SHARK ATTACK REGISTRY

Shark attacks shipwreck victim at Sable Island

Case number: 7
Date: August 14, 1888
Location: Sable Island, Nova Scotia
Incident type: Attack — Code: PRE
Species: Unknown
Possible cause(s): Shipwreck with struggling survivors and possibly blood in water (Provoked)
Result: Fatality
Status: Plausible
Description: A passenger screamed that he had been bitten by a shark after his ship, the Geiser sank from a collision with another vessel, the Thingvalla. The victim was presumed dead along with many other passengers that perished from drowning.

Assessment: There is too little information to confirm the shark species or that a shark was actually involved, but the incident occurred at a prime location and time for the white shark.

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References:
¹ Aurora Daily Express (18/08/1888)
(Background) Shipwreck. Photo by unknown author (CC BY-SA 3.0)
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Misrepresented and misunderstood, sharks play a critical role in North Atlantic ecosystems, but they are under increasing threat due to their unfair reputation, pollution, and a lack of public awareness. Please donate to help us study and protect the sharks of the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Canada before it’s too late.Donations to ORS, an all-volunteer charitable not-for-profit organisation, are tax deductible in Canada. Canada Revenue Agency #834462913RR0001

DONATE

“Fear and indifference bite deeper than any shark.”— Jeffrey Gallant, St. Lawrence Shark ObservatoryTax deductible in Canada
CRA #834462913RR0001DONATE