Coast Guard opens fire on shark closing in on 40-member crew as they scramble back to ship during Pacific swim
A Coast Guard Watch reportedly opened fire on an eight-foot shark that was approaching 40 novice crew members during a swim call in the Pacific.
The Long-Fin Mako or Pelagic Thresher shark was spotted making a beeline for crew members swimming in the ocean, prompting Maritime Enforcement Specialist 1st Class Samuel Cintron, designated shark-watch onboard the US Coast Guard Cutter Kimball, to open fire at the beast. Fortunately, the surprise encounter resulted in no casualties or injuries, including a huge inflatable unicorn that was floating alongside shipmates.
The story was revisited by the US Coast Guard Cutter Kimball in a Facebook post, where lucky crew members said they would be "retelling the story for years." The close call with the marine predator took place when crew members organized a swim call as a treat after a long day of hard work onboard the vessel. The Facebook post recalled how the weather was "perfect" and the Cutter was stationed "a zillion miles from land" with no other ships around.
Crew members jumped into the sea for a much-needed break from work, plunging in with their swim fins as well as a massive inflatable unicorn to play alongside. According to the post, a plan was already in place to ensure the safety of the crew. It included "safety briefs, an accountability system, manned rescue station, and a designated armed shark watch," the Daily Mail reported. Meanwhile, a smaller boat with a backup crew and a swimmer was also stationed about 50 yards away. The safety protocols came into effect as soon as a shark was spotted heading straight for the group of around 30 to 40 crew members swimming in the waters.
"As if right out of a Hollywood movie, a 6-8 foot shark (no exaggeration) surfaced at the Rescue Door and was swimming toward 30-40 people in the water about 30 feet away," read the Facebook post.
Designated shark watch Cintron immediately sprang into action, firing a shot on top of the marine predator. Meanwhile, shipmates scrambled towards the ship's Jacob's ladder, its small boat launch, or the small boat for safety. According to the post, the shark briefly appeared to swim away after the shot was fired, but then turned back and charged towards the crew members once again. Cintron subsequently fired another shot to keep the shark at bay until everyone was safely out of the water and out of its reach.
"It wasn't the panic of the 4th of July scene from JAWS, but once everyone realized what was happening, they moved with a purpose!" the crew noted.
The only injury reported was a graze on a crew member's knee which he sustained while clambering back to the ship. Ironically, the scratch was bang in the center of a tattoo of an open set of shark's teeth. "Seriously, you can't make this up!" the Facebook post noted. That said, footage from aboard the ship indicated that the shark was either a Long-Fin Mako or Pelagic Thresher Shark.
Shark sighting during a swim call is rare, the crew noted, adding that none of them had ever experienced it before. "We have hundreds of years at sea between all of us and no one has seen or heard of a shark actually showing up during a swim call," the post read. "This goes to show why we prepare for any and everything. We just didn’t think it would be a swim call shark attack!"
"This is a sea story each of us will be retelling for YEARS!!!" they added.
