(Mirror Daily, United States) – After the History Channel’s latest episode suggested that 3 convicts could’ve escaped from Alcatraz – America’s most infamous and secure prison – back in 1962, viewers were almost convinced it was possible.
But on second thought, maybe the sharks in the waters surrounding the island were very efficient guardians and those prisoners didn’t get to leave Alcatraz after all. In favor of this argument comes a surprising event witnessed by some tourists who visited the prison island just a few days prior to the episode’s airing.
While gazing out across the San Francisco Bay, the visitors were given an unexpected sideshow. The water suddenly turned bright red as a shark – thought to have been a great white – tore a seal to pieces. The attack was later made available in a video on YouTube shot by one of the tourists.
It might sound like a cool event to witness – and awfully scary as well – but the video is bad news for plenty of parties: starting from the alleged 1962 successful escapees to current San Francisco locals to even the sharks.
Catching such a cinematic standoff between shark and seal is a first the area’s recent history, and scientists think this is a sign that warming waters might be pushing the sharks further north that they have ever been.
Even though this is the first witnessed attack, the local newspapers have reported an increase in the number of great white shark sightings over the last year. Monterey Bay has been visited by at least 15 adult sharks that keep on the surface instead of looking for food in the deep ocean
Even more surprising was the rare glimpse of great white pups, which seem to be well into the dozens. According to the Pelagic Shark Research Foundation, this is the furthest north white shark pups have ever been sighted and documented.
The warming waters caused by El Niño could be the part of the reason behind the spike in shark peeks. At the same time, over-fishing is yet another problem that has forced them to look for new feeding grounds.
While San Franciscans may retire surfing in the area following this weekend’s shark sighting, the attack also casts some serious doubt on the idea that escaping from Alcatraz is a doable feat. The incredible escape of 1962 could’ve hit a deadly obstacle in the crossing to mainland: sharks.
Even if scientists are not sure that great whites were patrolling the water back in the summer of 1962, the tourists witnessing the fierce attack have no doubt about the fate of the escaped prisoners.
Image Source: SF Weekly