Swimmer's Narrow Escape After Shark Encounter at New Zealand Beach

On the evening of March 8, 1910, Mr. H. McGregor, an engineer from Mangapapa employed at Nelson Brothers Freezing Works, was swimming at Waikanae Beach near Gisborne on New Zealand's North Island. He ventured a considerable distance from shore into water deeper than his height, unaware of the danger that observers on the beach had already detected. Several women on the beach spotted the dorsal fin of a shark approaching McGregor's position and immediately called out warnings, waving their hands to alert him. Misinterpreting their signals as communication with other swimmers further along the beach, McGregor continued his swim. As he turned to make his return to shore, he felt something pass beneath the calf of his leg—his first indication that a predator was in pursuit. Realizing the situation's severity, McGregor, described as a powerful swimmer and man of strong nerve, struck out toward the beach with urgency. Within moments, he felt the shark make contact with one of his feet. The predator's teeth grazed his foot as he instinctively drew his leg upward, causing the shark to miss a more serious bite. McGregor's vigorous kicking and splashing movements frightened the approximately six-foot shark away. Upon reaching shore, McGregor's foot was found to be badly lacerated with a particularly deep gash beneath the toes, with clear tooth marks visible in the wound. First aid was administered by one of the women who had witnessed the encounter. Remarkably, McGregor was able to return to his employment at the freezing works the following day, having experienced one of the more documented shark incidents in New Zealand waters during that era.