The Australian scuba diver, Eric Nerhus said that he resisted the shark attack so vigorously because he did not want to be an undignified fish food. Fish food? The Great White Shark is no ordinary shark It is a huge mean meat eating machine and nothing in the ocean can stand against its ferocity and viciousness.



Scuba Diving Shark Encounter

According to Eric, he was scuba diving collecting abalone in the ocean south of Sidney when he suddenly found himself half way into the gigantic mouth of the 10 footer monster with its sharp razor teeth grinding on him. He told Australia's Nine Network TV station that he was so shocked at first that he did not know what was happening. 'I went straight into its mouth. My shoulders, my head and one arm went straight down its throat and I could feel its teeth crunching up and down on my scuba diving weight vest.' he described to reporters from his hospital bed.

Eric, a father of two teenage kids realized that his only hope of escaping from the shark was by stabbing repeatedly at the creature's eye with his abalone chisel as the shark begun to shake him side to side in a vicious vice like grip around his waist. The struggle was so violent that Eric's regulator (breathing apparatus scuba diving gear) was knocked out from his mouth preventing him from breathing and his diver's face mask crushed.

The shark must have been hurt by Eric's vigorous stabbing of its eye that it suddenly paused, and then open its mouth just in the nick of time for Eric to escape from the shark's deadly jaws. The gallant scuba diver then swam painfully to the surface followed by the shark not too far behind him. He was quickly pulled to safety by his son before the Great White shark gets its second chance of making Eric its fish food. The waters of Australia, South Africa and Florida are known to experience Great White Shark attacks on scuba divers, snorklers, surfers and swimmers now and then. Attacks by The Great White sharks are usually fatal and this scuba diver must have been very lucky to have escaped one piece.