‘Jawsome’ day out with Sharks Board

SHARK nets, surfers and frolicking dolphins were among the sites to be seen as the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board took to the Durban seas on Tuesday, October 26.

The boat ride was organised to give National Marine Week Competition winner, Pamela Hlekwyo, an inside peek at the Sharks Board’s morning shark net inspection and the Berea Mail tagged along for the ride.

Tour guide for the boat ride was Steven Mabugana, from the KZN Skarks Board outreach programme.

“The nets are 300m long. From top to bottom, it measures 6.3m. These sit in 14m deep water. Sharks can still swim over and under and even around it. A shark net is not a fence or a cage,” said Mabugana.

“When a net is thrown down, it has floats on the top. Those are called keg floats- it’s what keeps the net on the surface. At the bottom of the net there is a lead sinker that pulls the net down. On either side of the net, from one red buoy to the next red buoy, there is a stationary anchor. To change the net, the anchor is unhitched,” he added.

Also read: Sardines swim south, confirms KZN Sharks Board

KZN Sharksboard CEO, Harry Mbambo also attended the event.

“We are always prepared, especially this year. We were hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and had to come up with a new strategy. We had to lift our nets and drum lines during the lockdown and sardine run. Immediately after that we had to make sure our safety gear was put back so we are ready for the festive season. To our visitors and general members of the public, our beaches are safe. You may come and enjoy yourself without any fear that you will be attacked by sharks. We go out to the sea regularly to check on the shark safety gear to make sure everything is intact,” he said.

National Marine Week

The National Marine Week Competition was hosted by WESSA – Blue Flag Tourism Beach Stewarts programme and the KZN Sharks Board. Lindokuhle Mkhize is project co-ordinator for the Tourism Blue Flag Project, a project between WESSA and the Department of Tourism.

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“We have 100 youth in KZN, Eastern Cape and Western Cape. We have partner hosts and KZN Sharks Board is one of the partners hosting our students. We decided to run a marketing campaign during Marine Week, to emphasise marine tourism. The idea was to find a person who could drive the campaign. We identified Ruth Mthembu and ran a competition online using her platforms along with WESSA and the KZN Sharks Board’s platforms. Pamela was selected as the winner,” he said.

Hlekwyo said her interest in conservation had been piqued after learning about climate change.

“I have been really interested in learning more about marine life and how to take care of it. That is something that has been worrying me a lot because of what I have heard and read. Climate change and pollution is causing a lot of problems in the sea. I was really excited to take the boat ride and learn more and be with people who know a lot about what is happening in the ocean. Aside from the dolphins we saw, the highlight of the trip for me was seeing the people who go out every morning to make sure there aren’t any sharks or other ocean species trapped in the nets,” she said.

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