Hawaii Officials Search Missing Woman After Husband Calls 911, Reports Possible Shark Sighting While Snorkeling

Hawaii officials launched a search operation for a missing woman after her husband called 911 on Thursday noon, December 8. The unidentified man reported a possible shark sighting in the waters off the island state where he and his wife were snorkeling off Keawakapu Point in South Maui. Local officials said the man claimed to have seen a shark swim past them several times, according to media reports.

It is still unclear as to what happened to the woman, whose name was not provided by local authorities. However, reports said that it is evident that she disappeared and the officials called off the search operation after they failed to find her. There are also no signs such as blood or body parts which would suggest that a shark attack occurred.

Missing Woman Report

Dan Dennison, spokesman of the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), confirmed the missing woman's husband called 911 where he said he tried to look for his wife before returning to shore since she could not find her, as cited by Fox News.

As a result of a potential shark threat, the authorities issued shark warning signs from the Mauna Kai condominiums to Ulua Point, which remained in place at least until Friday noon, December 9, the US news channel reported.

Local reports indicate the woman was last seen wearing a blue bathing suit, where a suit was also found on the beach with a snorkel set. Members of the Maui Fire Department and Maui Ocean Safety had conducted an extensive in-water and aerial search with the U.S. Coast Guard but to no avail.

The officials halted the search and there were no reported indication of the presence of any sharks at that time, Dennison said, as also cited by the New York Post.

The possible shark sighting this December occurred after a shark attack was reported in Kalapaki Beach during a snorkeling activity on October 25. The event was preceded by another attack a week earlier in the Razorbacks area on October 18, during a surfing activity approximately 700 years from shore.

Hawaii Shark Attacks

Since 1980, unprovoked shark attacks have increased in Hawaii with a peak in 2014, according to the Division of Aquatic Resources of the DLNR. In recent years, fatal shark attacks have been recorded in 2014, 2016, and 2020. The data is based on a graph that depicts only confirmed unprovoked incidents from the International Shark Attack File (ISAF).

The ISAF database defines these incidents where a shark attacks a live human in its natural habitat without any provocation. In addition, the incidents do not involve shark scavenging on dead humans (most were drowning victims), attack on boats, and provoked attacks.

Another graph shows that the highest number of attacks with some fatalities occur were the highest from October to December, according to Hawaii's Division of Aquatic Resources, which emphasized that although fewer people swim in the waters from November to December, some of the state's most serious shark attacks transpire during the said months.