20100118
africanews

Authorities in the South African city of Cape Town have reopened its beaches which were closed after a Zimbabwean man was killed by a great white shark off the South African coast. The man was attacked 100 metres from the shore of Fish Hoek beach in the Western Cape on last week.
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Eye-witnesses said the massive shark attacked Loyd Skinner three times before dragging him under water.

The city has issued a warning of increased shark sightings in the area and urged bathers to exercise caution.

"Although the beaches have been declared safe, both Shark Spotting and lifesaving services will continue," the city said in a statement.

It said bathers should remain in groups and not go further than waist-deep.
Rescue workers scoured the Fish Hoek coastline for two days searching for the body of the 37-year-old engineer but by Thursday, nothing had been found.

A number of beach-goers witnessed Tuesday's gruesome attack.

"We looked at the walkway and saw people waving towels at us, then we looked further out to sea and saw what looked like blood and a man's leg come up," swimmer Kyle Johnston told a local newspaper.

Another witness said the shark was 4m long.

This is the second fatal attack on the beach since 2004, when a 77-year-old local woman was killed by a shark 150 metres from shore.

Eight sharks were sighted near Fish Hoek at the weekend by the city's Shark Spotters service, which has recorded 570 sightings over six years, according to media reports.