When you’re paddle boarding and spot a fin slicing through the water beneath you, it’s enough to make anyone’s heart skip a beat. That’s exactly what Malea Tribble experienced while gliding over the waters between the Bahamas and Lake Worth, Florida.
It was a sunny day in June of last year when Malea found herself being trailed by a mysterious fin. Suddenly, the serene water adventure took a heart-pounding turn as the owner of the fin—a shark—made its ominous presence known.
The chilling moment was captured on video and quickly spread across social media. In the footage, Malea remarkably remains composed while her husband, Ricky, guides her safely back to their boat. Meanwhile, another paddle boarder, Gabe, finds himself the new focus of the shark’s curiosity.
Onlookers anxiously watch and shout to Gabe, urging him to stay put as they try to figure out the type of shark circling him, which they suspect might be a hammerhead. Luckily, the shark soon loses interest, allowing Gabe to paddle back to safety, while Malea reflects on the terrifying encounter.
Speaking to Fox 35, Malea recounted the initial moments of the encounter, “I initially felt a few taps on my board but thought it was just seaweed on my fin.” She continued, “I was about 30 ft behind the boat when my husband spotted the shark fin. Based on his reaction, I knew immediately that it was a shark. I didn’t know how big or where exactly it was. I was surprised that it was bigger and much closer than I initially thought.”
She elaborated on her harrowing experience, “At one point in the video, he’s completely under my board. I also noticed how quick and sleek the movements were. The shark was seemingly just curious what I was in his house.”
The footage was taken by Travis Suit, founder and Executive Director of The Crossing For CF event. He expressed his relief and pride over the incident’s peaceful resolution, “We are grateful Malea was not harmed and so proud of the calm and disciplined response the Tribbles had during the situation as paddle mentors in this event, providing a great example of how to handle close encounters like this. We are visitors when we are in the ocean, it’s really their home, so it’s to be expected.”
While encounters like these are rare, the International Shark Attack File records show that there have been 18 recorded non-fatal, unprovoked incidents involving humans and hammerhead sharks, though none have been fatal.