Three local beaches, including Surf Beach, reopened on Sunday afternoon following three separate shark-related incidents in just a two-day span. <\/p>\n
Surf, Minuteman and Wall Beaches were all closed Friday morning by officials at Vandenberg Air Force Base after a surfer suffered nonfatal injuries due to an apparent attack by a great white shark Thursday afternoon about a quarter-mile north of Wall Beach. The three beaches were closed for 72 hours per standard procedure. <\/p>\n
Thursdays shark attack, in which the 28-year-old victim suffered cuts and a puncture wound to his knee, wasnt the only scare off local waters as the weekend approached. <\/p>\n
Two unrelated great white shark attacks were reported Friday by kayakers who had been traveling near the historic Boat House, south of Point Arguello on VAFB. <\/p>\n
According to the Shark Research Committee which runs http:\/\/www.sharkresearchcommittee.com<\/a>, a website that monitors and documents shark sightings along the Pacific Coast the attacks occurred about an hour apart. <\/p>\n In the first incident, a great white struck a kayak around noon, sending the vessels occupant into the ocean. The kayaker was removed from the water and taken safely to shore. <\/p>\n Not long after that, a great white estimated to be 18 to 20 feet long breached under (a) fisherman's kayak with such force that it ejected him about 10 feet into the air, according to an online post by the Shark Research Committee. Several tooth punctures are present in the bottom of this kayak. A tooth fragment clearly identified the attacker as a white shark. <\/p>\n Ryan Howell, a Lompoc resident, has said he was the fisherman involved in that second incident. <\/p>\n In Thursdays attack at Wall Beach, the shark was estimated by witnesses to be 10 feet to 12 feet long. <\/p>\n Last weeks attacks came after fatal shark attacks at Surf Beach in October 2010 and October 2012. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n More: <\/p>\n Beaches reopen after 3 reported shark attacks<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Three local beaches, including Surf Beach, reopened on Sunday afternoon following three separate shark-related incidents in just a two-day span. Continue reading