A shark chomped on a surfer’s board Sept. 7 in the waters off Surf Beach, in what appears to be the first time for such an event in the ocean off Vandenberg Air Force Base, officials said Thursday.

After consulting rangers at Jalama Beach County Park and other coastal parks about their policies, 30th Security Forces Squadron members issued a 48-hour warning to beach users, military officials said.

“Forty-eight hours was the consensus,” said Staff Sgt. Benjamin Rojek, a Vandenberg spokesman. “According to our conservation officer, this is the first time a shark incident has occurred (off Vandenberg). They wanted to get a recommendation because it was kind of new to them.”

Signs posted at the beach warned of the possible hazard and urged vigilance.

Air Force officials initially said the notices were posted for 24 hours, but later said it was two days.

Surf, which is west of Lompoc on Vandenberg Air Force Base property, is the closest publicly accessible beach for Lompoc Valley residents.

Base officials didn’t release information about the incident until this week. A story appeared on the Vandenberg Web site 11 days after the incident and in the base newspaper Thursday.

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Military officials said the shark is believed to be either a blue shark or great white.

The male surfer, whose name wasn’t revealed, wasn’t injured, but his surfboard had marks from the incident.

“He was a little shook up,” Senior Airman Lauren Daniels, a 30th Security Forces Squadron conservation law enforcement officer, told public affairs officials. “Luckily, however, the shark seemed more interested in his board than him.”

A Santa Barbara-based Web site that tracks shark encounters, TheFearBeneath.com, reported that the incident involved a surfer named Kyle. A statement also was posted at SharkResearchCommittee.com, a nonprofit scientific organization which began in 1962 to document shark attacks.

In a message claiming to be from Kyle, he said he had been surfing alone when a pod of dolphins swam by; a minute later he was hit from the back, or the tail, of the board, and lifted out of the water.

“I looked eye to eye with this shark as it passed me with my board in its mouth,” the message said. “As it thrashed around I assumed it was going to spit my board out when its tail hit me and then the shark disappeared. I’ve never been so scared in my life.”

The Fear Beneath claims the bite marks appear to have been caused by a great white shark, estimated between 12 and

14 feet long.

Vandenberg officials believe the surfer’s encounter was an isolated incident, and they say ocean users should pay attention to wildlife. For instance, seals or dolphins moving quickly toward the shore likely signals a threat nearby.

After a fatal shark attack in Avila Beach killed Nipomo resident Deborah Franzman, Port San Luis Obispo officials adopted a policy in 2003 for notifying people about possible ocean hazards.

Currently, the policy advises swimmers and surfers to remain out of the water for three days after officials learned of a credible shark sighting in Port San Luis waters.

Last November, harbor commissioners eased their Dangerous Marine Conditions Policy that had ordered waters closed for five days after a credible sighting.

Complete closures had occurred over three-day holiday weekends, prompting debate about warning water users versus scaring them away.

Janene Scully can be reached at 739-2214 or janscully@santamariatimes.com.

September 19, 2008