On 16 August, a 35-year-old Indonesian fisherman was injured by a blue shark (Prionace glauca) off the Portuguese coast. The incident occurred around 105 nautical miles (approximately 170 km) west of Vila do Conde. The navy coordinated an urgent medical evacuation via an EH-101 ‘Merlin’ helicopter from Squadron 751.
Multi-hour rescue from the high seas
The man was aboard the Vila do Infante when the bite to his leg caused severe bleeding. After around five hours of flight time, the helicopter landed at Sá Carneiro Airport; from there, he was taken to Hospital de São João. The patient was admitted to intensive care, and his condition was assessed as stable.
Likely provoked incident
Initial indications suggest that the bite came from a captured blue shark. In this case, the event is considered provoked – an important distinction in the statistics of unprovoked shark incidents.
“A crew member on board has been bitten by a blue shark – severe bleeding,” reported the navy during the alert.
