Instructions for Reporting a Shark Attack to the
International Shark Attack File
Reporting an Attack
If information is uncovered about a potential shark attack, historic or
new, please ask the victim and/or any witnesses to fill out a questionnaire,
or if more appropriate fill it out yourself based on information you've
developed, and forward it (them) to the International Shark Attack File by
traditional mail or electronically through e-mail. If multiple parties
witnessed an incident, we would appreciate it if you would ask them to fill
out a copy of the questionnaire independently so that we can get their
unbiased perspectives on the incident. Inclusion of any corroborative
documentation (such as newspaper articles; police, medical, or autopsy
reports; photographs of the victim, gear worn by the victim, and the attack
site; etc.) is also most appreciated, as is environmental information (e.g.
water temperature, water salinity, tidal state, habitat, etc.). The goal
is to gather as much information as possible relevant to the attack.
In addition to investigating the environmental factors and activities of
the victim and the shark involved in an incident, we are very interested in
documenting the medical aspects of an attack. If possible, we would
welcome photographs of the wounds and the permission to
request copies of relevant medical records. These data are used in
on-going medical studies examining the effectiveness of various modes of
medical action, especially as related to infection by
Vibrio. Any supplied
information, including the questionnaire and any such medical records, are
considered confidential and will be used only by screened professional
biological and medical researchers. The press is explicitly barred from
ISAF cases files.
The questionnaires are available in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese, as Word 6.0 format. Please click on the links below to download the file.
When you are done filling out the questionnaire you can email it as an attachment to
gburgess@flmnh.ufl.edu or mail
it to the Museum address listed on the questionnaire.
Medical Release Forms
In as much as we are involved in collaborative investigations of the medical
treatments of attack victims, we would welcome receiving permission to review medical records.
If you so agree, please fill out and sign the below medical release form.
Again, all information is considered strictly confidential.
© International Shark Attack File
Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida
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