Shark attacks have divided the community of Port St Johns (PSJ) along racial lines.
Tensions ran high during a public meeting at the town hall hosted by the department of environmental affairs to discuss preventing the attacks that have made Second Beach the world’s most dangerous bathing beach.
PSJ mayor, Mnyamezeli Mangqo said that since 2006 sharks had killed eight bathers and surfers. Earlier this year, a shark killed a tourist, devouring half his body.
Yesterday’s meeting was attended by 80 lifeguards, academics, residents, business owners and ratepayers. But the meeting nearly degenerated into a fight.
Tempers flared when the chairman of the Port St John’s Development Agency, Nzamela Ncoyini, accused PSJ whites of being uncomfortable with blacks flocking into the Wild Coast town. “The issue of Second Beach gets very political. Some people in this house are intimidated by the flow of black people into PSJ,” charged Ncoyini.
The comment solicited murmurs of “Hay’khona” from whites in the audience and one man walked out. Danie van Vuuren repeatedly interjected: “You don’t bring politics into this meeting! No politics!”
Meeting chair and director of administration in the department Chumani Solomzi Mangcu called for cool heads.
The main issue was how to keep adult Zambezi (bull) sharks out of the packed bathing areas during the upcoming festive season with ecologically sensitive and environmentally safe barriers such as electrical repellents and shark rods. The meeting agreed the festive season was a high-risk time for shark attacks.
However, while black members of the audience, including chief Langalizukile Majali, wanted shark nets along the coast, their white counterparts, comprising mainly business owners and conservationists with interests in the hospitality and tourism trade, dismissed the use of nets as ineffective and expensive.
The nets would trap other aquatic animals, which would attract more sharks to a feeding frenzy towards the shore, putting more lives in danger, they argued.
There was also a counter-argument about whether the lives of sharks were more important than those of holidaymakers.
Rob Nettleton said: “Who will be brave enough to go and empty the nets daily?”
Tony Oats, 70, who had 41 years of experience in fishing sharks, called them “prolific” predators. “You will not be able to control the sharks. It’s only the humans that you can control,” he commented.
PSJ Local Economic Development manager Zama Masumpa said a jet-ski, rubber duck and 42 extra lifeguards for PSJ beaches would be employed over the festive season.
One issue they all agreed on was that no one knew why there had been so many shark attacks at PSJ.
The public consultative meeting moves to Orient Theatre in East London at 10am tomorrow. — loyisom@dispatch.co.za