A diver is missing after being attacked by a shark in the Mediterranean. The incident took place earlier today off Hadera, north-west Israel, with efforts by authorities underway to locate the person.
The Hadera Municipality Coastal Department said it was “conducting searches by jet ski to locate the diver and will continue to update as developments occur”. It urged members of the public in the area to avoid entering the water and contact with sharks. Footage said to be of the incident has been shared online.
Eyewitnesses on shore can be heard shouting and screaming in horror.
In a statement, the Israel Police said: “A short time ago, officers from the Hadera Police Station and the Maritime Police were dispatched to the Hadera stream following reports from citizens who claimed they saw a shark attacking a diver in the water.
“Forces are en route, but no casualties have been located so far.”
The beach has been closed by the police.
According to The Sun, an eyewitness told Israeli TV station Channel 12: “I saw the diver in the depths of the water, he shouted: ‘I’m bitten, I’m bitten,’ and waved his hands in the air.
“After a few minutes, sharks bit him – and suddenly he disappeared.”
The station reports that the shark also attacked a rescue diver.
The incident is said to have happened near a power plant.
The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel has responded to the reports.
According to the Times of Israel, the group says it called on the state four years ago to regulate human activity around the sharks that visit the warm waters of the station between October and May.
It said in a statement: “Every winter, a unique phenomenon occurs in Israel in which sharks and rays gather at the outlet of the warm waters of the power stations.
“In the case of such a fascinating and public-attracting phenomenon, it would be appropriate to take conservation and safety measures for the public, but over the years, chaos has developed in the area.”
Sandbar and dusky sharks have reportedly been sighted around the power plant for decades – however, it is not clear what shark species attacked the diver.
An article by a scientist at the Kahn Marine Research Station, established by the University of Haifa, wrote in 2020 that between November and May, dozens of sharks gather next to the power plant where the hot water from the turbines pours into the Hadera River.
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