Black December refers to at least nine on causing six that occurred along the coast of KwaZulu-Natal in the Union of South Africa, from December 18, 1957, to April 5, 1958.
Perfect storm
In December 1957 several key factors occurred simultaneously to attract sharks to the
Durban area, including: (1)
whaling Whaler operating in the area; (2)
had
and washed
livestock into the
Indian Ocean and made the
murky; and (3) recent
resort development had increased the number of
swimming off the
.
Adding to the confusion was the lack of adequate shark research and the knowledge to prevent shark attacks in 1957.
Attack victims
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| Fatal attack, while surfing. | |
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Attempted solutions
Tourists fled the
Durban area during Black December causing a devastating impact on the local economy.
[ Gulf News: Keeping great whites at bay] The local authorities desperately made attempts to protect
Human swimming and
Surfing from
.
These attempts included enclosures built from wooden poles and netting; however, both were ineffective and were destroyed by the
Breaking wave.
A South African Navy
frigate dropped
causing few shark fatalities and attracted many more sharks into the area that feasted on the dead
fish.
KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board
As a result of Black December the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board, previously the
Natal Sharks Board and
Natal Anti-Shark Measures Board, was formed in 1962.
[ Africa Geographic: Shark nets - the real killers of the sea? ] The organization's mandate is to maintain
and
drum lines at 38 places, along 320 km of coastline of the
KwaZulu-Natal Province,
South Africa, to protect bathers and surfers from possible
.
See also
-
List of fatal shark attacks in South African territorial waters
-
List of shark attacks in South African territorial waters
-
2010 Sharm El Sheikh shark attacks
-
Jersey Shore shark attacks of 1916
-
Red Triangle (Pacific Ocean)
-
Summer of the Shark
