Every swimmer’s worst fear was confirmed when a shark managed to enter a swimming enclosure at a Western Australia beach.
The 1.8 metre bronze whaler shark was seen lurking inside the enclosure on Saturday morning at Middleton Beach in Albany.
It took eight hours to remove the stubborn intruder and nobody seems to know how the shark got through the recently installed $200,000 net.
Every swimmer’s worst fear was confirmed on the weekend when a 1.8m Bronze Whaler shark (pictured)managed to enter a swimming enclosure at a Western Australia beach
It took eight hours to remove the stubborn intruder and nobody seems to know how the shark got through the recently installed $200,000 net (pictured)
‘There was no obvious way the shark could have swam into the enclosure. How the shark came to be in the enclosure remains a mystery,’ City of Albany’s Executive Director Infrastructure and Environment Matthew Thomson said (mock up design of the net)
The shark net – designed to keep swimmers safe – cost the Western Australian government $200,000.
A week-long investigation has left both Albany Council and the builder of the experimental safe swimming barrier, Global Marine Enclosures, baffled.
A team of divers are just as perplexed after inspecting the 320 metre-long barrier, which drops in places to a depth of six metres.
‘There was no obvious way the shark could have swam into the enclosure. How the shark came to be in the enclosure remains a mystery,’ City of Albany’s Executive Director Infrastructure and Environment Matthew Thomson told nine.com.au.
‘There is no evidence the shark breached the enclosure so we are still looking at possible causes.’
A team of divers (left) are just as perplexed after inspecting the 320 metre-long barrier, which drops in places to a depth of six metres
To add to the list of unusual incidents the occur in the usually-safe swimming area, a dead 1.5 metre mako shark was found inside the enclosure last month.
‘We suspect [the mako] was dumped in there as a closer inspection found the shark had sustained injuries consistent with fishing,’ Mr Thompson said.
‘The enclosure has been in place for almost three years and performing as designed so it is odd that we have found these two small sharks within the enclosure in the past two months.’
The net’s three-year trial ends next year and its performance will be discussed by the council.
‘We will be working with the manufacturer to review its performance before the council considers future options,’ Mr Thomson said.
Global Marine Enclosures, the Perth-based company which built the barrier, has a second enclosure trial in operation at Quinns Beach in Perth which extends 85m offshore and runs 300m along the beach.
The WA State Government funded barrier, launched in January 2017, will be tested over a five-year period.
‘We have no idea how the shark came to be inside the enclosure,’ Edward Khoury, owner of Global Marine Enclosures said.
To add to the list of unusual incidents the occur in the usually-safe swimming area, a dead 1.5 metre mako shark was found inside the enclosure (pictured) last month