A father and son trip to the beach turned into tragedy when a tiger shark mauled the younger man at a popular beach spot in Egypt.
Vladimir Popov, 23, was spending the day by the Red Sea in Hurghada, replete with white sandy beaches and crystal clear blue water. However his dip into the sea, while surrounded by other tourists, soon turned into a horror show as a shark swam towards Mr Popov.
His father Yury watched on helplessly as the 10ft shark circled around Russian Mr Popov who screamed out “papa, papa” as he was dragged under the water and holidaymakers scrambled from sea.
Locals would go on to exact revenge after capturing a shark and publically killing it.
Witnesses said the sea had turned a deep crimson red around Mr Popov as the shark toyed with his body for more than two hours. After a time the 23-year-old’s screams for his father stop.
Footage from the incident showed the beast’s fin and tail appearing from the water, as a beachgoer shouted out: “It is eating his remains now.”
“We went to the beach to relax. My son was attacked by a shark. It all happened in seconds,” Yury told local media.
“What kind of help can you give? This meat grinder happened in 20 seconds, he was just dragged under the water.”
The beast was then lifted out of the sea in a net and taken to the beach on a small boat where it was bludgeoned to death.
Video footage shows people hitting the fish over the head with what appeared to be a metal pole or a stick.
It appeared to be alive as it thrashed on the sand with a hook in its eye.
Authorities closed off a 46-mile stretch of the coastline, announcing it will remain off limits until Sunday.
Yury added: “This is an absolutely ridiculous coincidence, because it is a safe beach. There are ships and yachts around.
“It's never happened there. They usually attack on wild beaches. It's just some kind of evil fate."
The ministry later said it had caught the shark and was examining it in a laboratory to try to determine the reasons for the rare attack.
Shark attacks are rare in the Red Sea coastal regions.
However, in 2022 there were two fatal attacks in Hurghada within days, killing an Austrian and a Romanian tourist.
Egypt’s Red Sea resorts, including Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh, boast some of the country’s most renowned beach destinations and are popular with European tourists.
Divers are attracted by the steep drop-offs of coral reefs just offshore, which offer a rich and colourful sea life.
Egypt has in recent years sought to revive the vital tourism sector, which has been hurt by years of political instability, the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
Tiger sharks are large species that reside in tropical and temperate waters and are among sharks most cited by the International Shark Attack File for unprovoked attacks on humans.
