Shark attrack

Most sharks are not dangerous and leave people alone. Sharks attack about 50 to 75 people each year in the world, but only 5 to 10 of these reported attacks result in death. People are more likely to die in car accidents or drown in the sea than be killed by a shark. Attacks may occur when a shark mistakes a person for its normal prey, biting foot that looks like a fish. A shark may attack if it feels threatened or is provoked. It is dangerous to be in water is murky, if you have cut yourself, or if bait has been out for fish. Always take advice if there are sharks in the area - never swim alone or at night.

Rodney Fox, an award-winning Australian diver, must be one of very few people to have experienced and survived the bite of a large shark. The attack exposed his stomach, lungs and rib cage; the fresh on his arm was stripped to the bone and his ribs were crushed - one of them puncturing his lung. Fox spent four hours on the operating table in Adelaide (above) and he was lucky to be attended by a surgeon who had just returned from a course in England on chest operations. The wounds needed 462 stitches. Not long after the attack, Fox was back diving again, and a year later he was part of the team which won the Australian national championship. He will carry the scars (right) of his awful encounter for the rest of his life.