Beaches in Walton County closed due to shark attacks; three people injured

SEACREST – Walton County beaches were closed Friday afternoon due to two shark attacks that left three people injured, two seriously.

According to the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, the Walton County Fire Department and South Walton Fire District responded to a report that a woman had been injured by a shark near Watersound Way and Coopersmith Lane shortly after 1:15 p.m. Friday.

The South Walton Fire District transported the victim to a local medical facility. At a 5 p.m. press conference, officials said the 45-year-old woman lost her left forearm and suffered midsection injuries. She was hospitalized in critical condition.

They said she was swimming past the first sandbar when she got injured.

Watch the press conference on the shark attacks here.

As for the second attack, at approximately 2:56 p.m., the Walton County Sheriff’s Office and South Walton Fire District responded to an area near Inlet Beach. According to the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, two people were injured.

At the press conference, officials said the victims ranged in age from 15 to 17. They were in waist-deep water just beyond the first sandbar, about 4 miles from the site of the first attack. One victim was hospitalized in critical condition, one in stable condition.

Double red flags are now flying on beaches in the area, meaning the waters of the Gulf of Mexico are closed. Anyone violating the warning faces a $500 fine.

For this reason, all beaches in Walton County will remain closed for the remainder of Friday.

According to trackingsharks.com, the Walton County incidents are the first three shark-related incidents in Florida in 2024.

How many shark bites were there worldwide in 2023?

The Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File examined 120 suspected shark-human interactions worldwide in 2023. Of these, 69 were confirmed to be unprovoked shark bites on humans and 22 were found to be provoked bites.

Breakdown of 2023 reports worldwide:

Unprovoked bites: 69
Provoked bites: 22
Boat bites: 9
Carrion: 2 (postmortem bites)
Public aquariums: 1
No assignment could be made: 1
Not confirmed: 16

How does 2023 compare to other years in terms of shark bites?

The 69 confirmed unprovoked cases correspond to the average of 63 incidents per year over the past five years (2018-2022), according to the Florida Museum.

How many fatal shark bites were there in 2023?

There have been 14 confirmed shark deaths this year, 10 of which were considered unprovoked. Two of these occurred in the United States.

By 2023, the number of fatal shark bites will be more than double the 5-year average

The number of 14 shark-related deaths is higher than the global average of six unprovoked deaths per year over the past five years.

Three of the unexplained deaths were caused by great white shark bites on surfers in Australia.

The Florida Museum said the increase in deaths in 2023 could be due to annual fluctuations, “but it could also be the result of increasing numbers of great white sharks being sighted at gathering sites near beaches popular with surfers (particularly in Australia).”

The 5 most common places for unprovoked shark bites worldwide

According to the International Shark Attack File, the five places where unprovoked shark bites most commonly occur are:

United States: 36, including 2 fatal
Australia: 15, of which 4 were fatal
New Caledonia: 3, including 1 fatality
Brazil, 3, no fatalities
Egypt: 2, including 1 fatality

The United States recorded the most unprovoked shark bites in 2023, with 36 confirmed cases. This is slightly less than the 41 incidents recorded in 2022.

Florida leads the United States in the number of unprovoked shark bites

Florida remains the region with the most shark bites.

In 2023, 16 bites were confirmed—although none were fatal. That’s less than the historical average of 19 incidents per year in Florida.

Florida: 16 bites, none fatal
Hawaii: 8 bites, 1 fatal
New York: 4 bites, none fatal
California: 2 bites, 1 fatal
North Carolina: 3 bites, none fatal
South Carolina: 2 bites, none fatal
New Jersey: 1 bite, none fatal
What do people do when they are bitten by sharks?

According to the Florida Museum, people reacted to a shark bite as follows:

Surfing/board sports: 42%

Swimming/Wading: 39%

Snorkeling/freediving: 13%

Other: 6%

Most shark attacks in the state of Florida occur on the east coast

Although shark bites have occurred throughout the state, two things stand out:

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