Sardine run

KwaZulu-Natal bathers need to be cautious as shark nets have been removed from most beaches due to the annual sardine run.This is done each year as a precaution to prevent sharks and dolphins from getting caught in the nets while feeding on the sardines. The safety gear has been removed between Salt Rock on the north coast and Port Edward on the south including Durban. Bathers should ask lifeguards on duty if it is safe to swim.Last week a United States scuba diver was mauled in a shark attack off the Rocky Bay coast near Durban. According to ER24 spokesman Chris Botha, both of his hands and his left leg were badly mauled.The 22-year-old man was airlifted to the Albert Luthuli Central Hospital in Durban. Botha said the man was conducting scientific research when he was attacked.“There is always a danger that the predator will mistake a diver for part of their meal when (the shark) goes into a feeding frenzy,” Botha said.The skipper of the boat “definitely saved the young man's life” by lifting him from the water and stemming the flow of blood.Paramedics stabilised the injured man before he was airlifted to the Albert Luthuli Central Hospital in Durban.