KALAPAKI, KAUAI— It was around 6:30 a.m. Wednesday when Kekoa Kinimaka spotted a shark on the left side of the bay at Kalapaki Beach on Kauai.
“I saw the tip and tail and head of the shark pop up,” said the avid surfer. “It was maybe four to five feet.”
Another Kauai man reported he was bitten by a shark 25 to 30 yards off shore about 6 that morning at Kalapaki Beach.
According to the Department of Land and Natural Resources, the surfer — whose identity has not been released — suffered a single puncture wound to his arm by an estimated three- to four-foot shark.
The surfer drove himself to the hospital, was treated and later released, according to a DLNR report.
Officials and witnesses could not identify the species of the shark.
The DLNR posted warning signs along a two-mile stretch of Kalapaki Beach on the southeastern shore. The signs will stay posted until noon today.
At the time of the incident, Kinimaka said about five people were in the water.
“I saw a few people on the shore break, and they thought it was a dolphin, but it was no dolphin,” he said.
When DLNR officials arrived, Kinimaka said everyone exited the water.
Around 8 a.m., the shark left, he said.
This is the third incident of a shark bite on Kauai this year and the sixth in the state.
Since 1995, DLNR has received 13 reports of shark-related incidents on the island.