The fatal shark attack in Hawaii over the weekend has once again raised fears.
The 65 year old man from California who was vacationing in Maui and died after being bitten by a shark Saturday was said to be about 150 yards out into the water when it happened.
It was the first fatal shark attack in Hawaii in four years with the last one in 2015, when a snorkeler was killed also near Maui.
With as many swimmers, surfers, paddle boarders, snorkelers and divers who have been in the ocean waters in all of Hawaii over four years, probably a million or more, the odds of being bitten by a shark are very low.
The last one in San Diego was 11 years ago in 2008 when a 66-year-old swimmer from Solana Beach who was training with a group of triathletes, was attacked by a great white shark at Tide Beach. In 2017, a 35-year-old mother from Vista was nearly killed in a shark attack.
Since 1980, almost 40 years ago, in all of California, there have been 9 people who have died from being bitten by a shark. So fatal shark attacks are very rare. But they do happen from time to time.
As the chief of Hawaii’s Division of Conservation and Resource Enforcement put it to ABC News after the death of the man in Maui:
“In an island state that’s surrounded by water, human and shark conflicts do occur from time to time. There is always the potential for conflict between animal and human.”
WATCH: How to survive a shark attack.
(Photo credit Getty Images)