Two Severe Shark Attacks Strike Pernambuco Coast

Overview

• The attacks occurred Sunday and Monday when an 11-year-old boy was bitten at Piedade and a 19-year-old woman was mauled at Boa Viagem, and both victims were taken to Hospital da Restauração in critical condition and placed in intensive care.
• A visiting doctor performed on‑beach first aid, including improvised tourniquets, and local rescuers credit that immediate care with helping the 19‑year‑old survive until surgery.
• Cemit says the two incidents raised Pernambuco's official total to 84 recorded shark incidents since 1992 and provisionally attributes the Piedade bite to a flathead (cabeça‑chata) shark and the Boa Viagem attack to an about 3m tiger shark.
• More than one‑third of the 150 shark‑warning plaques installed in January 2025 have been vandalized or removed, leaving roughly 95 signs in place and weakening a primary prevention tool used with beach flags and tide guidance.
• The state relaunched coastal monitoring in January 2026 with multi‑year funding of over R$1 million, while researchers point to coastal geomorphology and possible impacts from Porto de Suape as drivers of concentrated incidents even though a federal probe into the port was archived.