On May 23, Cheslei Akima and Alika Dickerson were pedalling their tandem fishing kayak in the waters off the coast of West Maui, Hawaii. They were headed offshore to do some kayak fishing, like they spend many of their weekends doing together. It was a beautiful day, with clear skies, warm temperatures and calm water. But while they were still on their way out, before they’d even had a chance to catch bait, something happened that neither of them ever expected.
Akima, who was sitting in front of Dickerson, saw a fin rise out of the water in front of them, and the next thing they knew, a tiger shark was latched onto the side of their kayak.
The shark was right beside Akima. “His fin was sticking out of the water and his head, you could see it clear as day,” she retells. “He was just shaking us. We thought we were going to flip.”
Dickerson, who hadn’t even seen the shark coming, sprang into action. He punched it once on the nose and twice on the head. After the third punch, it let go and slipped back under the water.
“We didn’t know if the kayak had holes in it from the attack,” says Akima. “We didn’t know if we were taking on water or anything. Our biggest concern was getting to shore as fast as possible.”
The pair pedalled hard back to the launch, not knowing if the shark was still nearby. There were no other kayakers or boaters out on the water that day, no one around to call for help or warn.
When they got back to shore, they inspected their kayak and found teeth marks in the hull. Their amas (stabilizers) had also sustained damage during the attack. Thankfully, both are repairable. But Akima and Dickerson are both shaken up.
Dickerson has been kayak fishing for more than 10 years and has never experienced anything like this before, nor does he know of anyone who has had a similar experience. Akima has been kayak fishing for around a year.
“We see sharks, but usually it’s no big deal,” she says. “They just come up, check us out, and then leave us alone. But this one, it’s crazy because it just popped up and started coming at us.”
According to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, three to four sharks bite people in Hawaiian waters each year. Fatal shark bites, however, are exceedingly rare.
Both Dickerson and Akima are on Team Hawaii and will be competing in the USA Saltwater Kayak Fishing National Championship in San Diego, California, in August this year. Although the pair usually fish together on a tandem, they were planning to do some fishing on solo kayaks to prepare for the tournament. Now, though, Akima says she feels nervous to be on her own boat.
“If we do, then I would want him right next to me the whole time,” she continues.
She says they’ve already been back out since the attack, but stayed inshore.
“It’s hard to enjoy the scenery like we used to,” she says. “Now I’m on high alert. Anything that pops up on the water, I’m like, what is that? I have the bang stick and everything at arm’s reach.”
