NORTH SHORE SHARK ATTACK Tiger shark attacks local surfer, reminiscent of early-1990s scourge By Matt Pruett Photos by Bernie Baker

Published: April 5, 2012

April 5, 2012 Views: 10,756







NORTH SHORE SHARK ATTACK Tiger shark attacks local surfer on North Shore at Leftovers..





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Related Around 12:45pm on Tuesday, what is believed to have been a 10-foot tiger shark bit down on the left foot of Joshua Holley, a 28-year-old surfer from Waialua who had been enjoying a murky solo session on the North Shore of Oahu.

The same lineup, very empty just a day later. Warning signs are posted at Ali'i Beach Park, Chun's Reef Support Park, Ehukai Beach Park, Haleiwa Beach Park, Ke'Waena Beach Park, Laniakea Beach Support Park, Sunset Beach Park and Waimea Bay Beach Park.



The average surfer may finally be able to score some uncrowded waves on North Shore.

"Survival mode kicked in and I punched it really hard once and then twice. I didn't want to panic or go into shock or anything like that."



The attack occurred in the channel between Alligator Rock and Leftovers, eerily resembling another grisly encounter at the same spot almost two decades ago. "We had that rash of shark attacks across the North Shore in 1992," remembers North Shore fixture Bernie Baker. "The incident at Leftovers that took the life of a bodyboarder was under identical wind conditions -- a hard west sea breeze pushing up from the Haleiwa side of the North Shore. His board was found the next morning a mile up the coast, blown across the ocean through the night and found in the Waimea Bay stream pond."

"Survival mode kicked in and I punched it really hard once and then twice." -- Joshua Holley



That attack bookmarked a horrifying period in Hawaiian history that left ocean scientists baffled, as tiger sharks began attacking surfers and swimmers on April 3rd, 1991, including four fatalities and nine other attacks on waveriders along three islands over the next 33 months. Many execs in the tourism industry and locals alike rallied for a massive extermination campaign, while other native Hawaiians cited that sharks were aumakua (ancestral guardians) and should be spared. Prior to this bloody era, the only fatality directly attributed to a shark attack occurred in 1958.



With two strangers named Thomas and Jason assisting him to shore, Holley was taken to Wahiawa General Hospital. He is now recovering at home while longtime North Shore residents pray this isn't another toothy trend like the one that began plaguing the Aloha State almost 21 years ago to the day of Holley's attack.



In the meantime, waveriders and swimmers alike are urged to stay out of the water until lifeguards deem it safe to return. Warning signs are posted at Ali'i Beach Park, Chun's Reef Support Park, Ehukai Beach Park, Haleiwa Beach Park, Ke'Waena Beach Park, Laniakea Beach Support Park, Sunset Beach Park and Waimea Bay Beach Park.



And if you must surf here, try not to do it alone. That attack bookmarked a horrifying period in Hawaiian history that left ocean scientists baffled, as tiger sharks began attacking surfers and swimmers on April 3rd, 1991, including four fatalities and nine other attacks on waveriders along three islands over the next 33 months. Many execs in the tourism industry and locals alike rallied for a massive extermination campaign, while other native Hawaiians cited that sharks were(ancestral guardians) and should be spared. Prior to this bloody era, the only fatality directly attributed to a shark attack occurred in 1958.With two strangers named Thomas and Jason assisting him to shore, Holley was taken to Wahiawa General Hospital. He is now recovering at home while longtime North Shore residents pray this isn't another toothy trend like the one that began plaguing the Aloha State almost 21 years ago to the day of Holley's attack.In the meantime, waveriders and swimmers alike are urged to stay out of the water until lifeguards deem it safe to return. Warning signs are posted at Ali'i Beach Park, Chun's Reef Support Park, Ehukai Beach Park, Haleiwa Beach Park, Ke'Waena Beach Park, Laniakea Beach Support Park, Sunset Beach Park and Waimea Bay Beach Park.And if you must surf here, try not to do it alone.

So why aren't we jumping for joy? Probably because sometime around 12:45pm on Tuesday, what is believed to have been a 10-foot tiger shark bit down on the left foot of Joshua Holley, a 28-year-old surfer from Waialua who had been enjoying a murky solo session on the North Shore of Oahu."I felt this unreal push on the left side of my body and it was like this popping sensation on my foot. I look down to my left and I see this huge dorsal fin," Holley told Hawaii News Now