After a six year legal battle, Aussie surfer granted the tooth of the shark that took his leg
An Australian man got the whole tooth after a six-year legal battle to retrieve a souvenir from the 18-foot Great white shark that almost killed him.
Summer of the shark: Why they are attacking and what to do if it happens to you
“It seems stupid that I wasn’t able to have it in the first place, but that’s what the law says.”
Blowes was out surfing when the great white came up behind him and attacked, BBC reported .
“It shook me about and played with me for a bit — and it ended up pulling my leg off,” he told the outlet.
Blowes was pulled ashore by two friends and treated by paramedics, then hurried to hospital.
“My heart had completely stopped and they had to administer CPR until I showed any signs of life,” he says. Police took his surfboard — and the tooth embedded in it.
He asked state officials for the tooth several times to no avail. Under the Fisheries Management Act in South Australia, possession, sale and purchase of White Sharks can result in a $100,000 fine or two years imprisonment
An Australian man got the whole tooth after a six-year legal battle to retrieve a souvenir from the 18-foot Great white shark that almost killed him.
© Provided by National Post Bowles' costly tooth.
At Fishery Bay in the state of South Australia in 2015, surfer Chris Blowes lost his left leg in a shark attack that left him in a coma for 10 days.
The shark’s tooth became lodged in his surfboard but, under state law, possession of animal parts of protected species was illegal and punishable by two years’ jail time and thousands in fines.
Blowes has been granted the first legal exemption to the protected species rule after a drawn-out ordeal he described to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation as “ridiculous.”
At Fishery Bay in the state of South Australia in 2015, surfer Chris Blowes lost his left leg in a shark attack that left him in a coma for 10 days.
The shark’s tooth became lodged in his surfboard but, under state law, possession of animal parts of protected species was illegal and punishable by two years’ jail time and thousands in fines.
Blowes has been granted the first legal exemption to the protected species rule after a drawn-out ordeal he described to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation as “ridiculous.”
Summer of the shark: Why they are attacking and what to do if it happens to you
“It seems stupid that I wasn’t able to have it in the first place, but that’s what the law says.”
Blowes was out surfing when the great white came up behind him and attacked, BBC reported .
“It shook me about and played with me for a bit — and it ended up pulling my leg off,” he told the outlet.
Blowes was pulled ashore by two friends and treated by paramedics, then hurried to hospital.
“My heart had completely stopped and they had to administer CPR until I showed any signs of life,” he says. Police took his surfboard — and the tooth embedded in it.
He asked state officials for the tooth several times to no avail. Under the Fisheries Management Act in South Australia, possession, sale and purchase of White Sharks can result in a $100,000 fine or two years imprisonment
.
Chris Blowes/ Facebook Chris Blowes, 32, back to surfing after
he lost his leg to a Great white in 2015.
“I would never kill a shark for its tooth but it took my leg [so] I can’t see any reason why I can’t have that,” he said.
“The shark isn’t getting its tooth back [and] I’m not getting my leg back.”
Finally with the help of a local politician, the Department of Primary Industries and Regions granted Blowes the morbid memento, but it came at a huge cost, Blowes told ABC.
“It’s not a fair trade, a leg for a tooth.”
Blowes, who has also written a book about the incident, said he plans to hold on to the tooth as a story for his grandkids and carry it along for motivational speeches.
“I would never kill a shark for its tooth but it took my leg [so] I can’t see any reason why I can’t have that,” he said.
“The shark isn’t getting its tooth back [and] I’m not getting my leg back.”
Finally with the help of a local politician, the Department of Primary Industries and Regions granted Blowes the morbid memento, but it came at a huge cost, Blowes told ABC.
“It’s not a fair trade, a leg for a tooth.”
Blowes, who has also written a book about the incident, said he plans to hold on to the tooth as a story for his grandkids and carry it along for motivational speeches.
No comments:
Post a Comment