SHARM EL-SHEIKH (Update) - As the Governor of Southern Sinai said a shark thought to be responsible for four attacks along the coastline of the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh was caught, another senior official denied the report saying that search operations were still underway. "An adult oceanic white-tip shark thought to be responsible for injuring four tourists in Na'ema Bay was caught in the area where the attacks took place. We are examining it to make sure it was the attacker," Southern Sinai Governor Adel Fadil Shousha said. The shark that attacked swimmers off an Egyptian resort might have become frenzied after a transport ship dumped dead sheep in the sea, the governor said. “Maybe the shark was attracted after a ship dumped dead sheep into the sea,” he added. However, a senior diving official said the search was underway for the predator until the shark was examined. "The shark, that has been caught could be not the attacker. Therefore, the search is on for any other shark in the area," Hesham Gabr, the head of the Chamber of Diving and Sea Activities, told The Egyptian Gazette. He added that the 48-hour swimming ban imposed in a part of the area of attacks would be extended until diving and swaimming safety was made sure. All diving and water sports were suspended until the end of Thursday. Health officials said the oceanic white-tip shark had attacked the three Russians and an Ukrainian off Sharm el-Sheikh on Tuesday and Wednesday, biting off a hand and causing severe leg and back injuries. They were transferred from Sharm el-Sheikh Hospital to the Nasser Institute Hospital in Cairo for treatment. The administration of both hospitals banned visits to the victims. A source at the Tourism Ministry, meanwhile, said the incident had no impact upon the arrivals of tourists to Sharm el-Sheikh, a world-famous holiday spot. “Shark attacks in the Red Sea are reported once every year or two,” said Mohamed Salem, the director of South Sinai Conservation. The region is famed for its abundant coral, clear waters and exotic fish. The last person to die from a shark attack in Egypt was killed while snorkelling near Sharm el-Sheikh in 2004, according to the Global Shark Attack File Website www.sharkattackfile.net. Environment expert Magdi al-Alwani said the shark could have been forced closer to shore by overfishing in its environment, or was possibly hit by a boat, which had badly affected its nerves.
