California’s coastline is both a paradise for sun-seekers and a hub for marine life, including sharks. As people flock to its beaches, occasional encounters with these apex predators can occur, leading to shark attacks. We offer the most up-to-date details on shark attacks in California, updated weekly, to keep both residents and tourists informed. An understanding of these events can guide safety measures, ensuring that our shared spaces remain both enjoyable and secure. As the Golden State grapples with balancing tourism and marine conservation, knowledge becomes our best tool.
Recent Shark Attacks in California
| Date | Country / Area | Activity | Name | Sex / Age | Injury | Species |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-13 | USA ,Mendocino County | Surfing | Tommy Civic | M /26 | Minor puncture wounds to upper left thigh | Suspected GWS |
| 2025-12-21 | USA ,Lovers Point Pacific Grove | Swimming | Erica Fox | F /55 | Taken by shark body recovered with multiple injuries | Great White Shark |
| 2025-12-12 | USA ,Salmon Creek | Surfing | Unknown | M | Hand Injury | Suspected Great White Shark |
| 2025-09-29 | USA ,Catalina Island | Swimming | Christopher Murray | M /54 | Leg and foot injury | unknown 1.2m shark |
| 2025-05-31 | USA ,Montara State Beach | Surfing | Jens Heller | M /42 | No injury | Great White |
| 2024-06-02 | USA ,Del Mar Beach San Diego | Swimming ocean training | Caleb Adams | M /46 | Significant bites to torso left arm and hand | Not specified |
| 2023-01-05 | MeXICO ,Tobari Bay | Diving with surface-supplied air | Manuel Nieblas López | M /53 | Fatal | |
| 2022-11-04 | USA ,Del Mar Beach, San Diego County | Swimming | Lyn Jutronich | F /50 | Shallow punctures & lacerations to right thigh | Juvenile white shark |
| 2022-10-31 | USA ,Otter Point, Pacific Grove | Surfing | Jim Affinito | M | Minor inury from shark's fin | |
| 2022-10-02 | USA ,Centerville Beach | Surfing | Jared Trainor | M /31 | Thigh injured | White shark, 13' |
| 2022-08-10 | USA ,Lovers Point, Pacific Grove, Monterey County | Paddleboarding | David Stickler & Brutus (dog) | M | No injury, board bitten | |
| 2022-06-22 | USA ,Pacific Grove, Monterey County | Swimming | Steve Breummer | M /62 | Stomach and leg injuries including a broken femur | White shark, 16' |
| 2022-02-26 | USA ,San Miguel Islandl, Santa Barbara County | Boogie boarding | Tomas Butterfield | M /42 | FATAL | White shark |
| 2021-10-03 | USA ,Salmon Creek Beach, Sonoma County | Surfing | Eric Steinley | M /38 | Injury to posterior left thigh | |
| 2021-07-21 | USA ,Capitola Beach, Santa Cruz County | Surfing | Jennifer Romney | F | No injury | |
| 2021-06-30 | USA ,Catalina Island, Orange County | Canoeing | Eddie Cahill | M /15 | Hand injured | |
| 2021-06-26 | USA ,Gray Whale Beach Cove State Beach, San Mateo County | Swimming | Nemaja Spasojevic | M /38 | Posterior right thigh bitten | White shark, 6' to 8' |
| 2020-12-30 | USA ,Coronado, San Diego County | Swimming | Phil Garn | M | No injury. Swim fin bittten | White shark |
| 2020-08-28 | USA ,Shelter Cove, Humboldt County | Kayak fishing | David Alexander | M | No injury, kayak damaged | White shark |
| 2020-05-09 | USA ,Sand Dollar Beach, Santa Cruz County | Surfing | Ben Kelly | M /26 | FATAL | White shark |
| 2020-05-01 | USA ,Summerland, Santa Barbara County | Swimming | Mandy Boyd | F /57 | 2 lacerations to foot | 5' to 6' shark |
| 2020-04-29 | USA ,Moonlight Beach, San Diego County | Body Boarding | male | M /16 | Minor injury to ankle from stingray | |
| 2020-03-27 | USA ,Pleasure Point, Santa Cruz County | Stand-Up Paddleboarding | Austin Vera | M | No injury, paddleboard bitten | |
| 2019-12-21 | USA ,Santa Rosa Island, Ventura County | Surfing | Adam Coons | M /37 | Right leg bitten | |
| 2019-11-06 | USA ,San Onofre, San Diego County | Surfing | Michelle Doty | F | No inury, knocked from board | Juvenile white shark? |
| 2019-10-25 | USA ,Cambria, San Luis Obispo County | Kayak fishing | David Zamora | M | No injury, kayak bitten | White shark |
| 2019-10-05 | USA ,Ship Rock near Catalina, Los Angeles County | Kayaking | Danny McDaniel | M /51 | No injury, shark bit kayak | White shark |
| 2019-05-07 | USA ,North Salmon Creek Beach, Sonoma County | Surfing | Katie Wilson | F /28 | No injury, shark severed surfboard leash | White shark |
| 2019-01-08 | USA ,Sandspit Beach, Montaña de Oro State Park | Surfing | Nick Wapner | M /19 | Cuts to both lower legs | White shark, 4.6m |
| 2018-10-23 | USA ,Farallon Islands | Diving / Filming | Ron Elliott | M | Injury to right hand / wrist | White shark, 17' female |
| 2018-09-29 | USA ,Beacons Beach, San Diego County | Diving | Keane Hayes | M /13 | Traumatic injuries to upper torso | White shark, 11' |
| 2018-09-27 | USA ,Humboldt County | Fishing | Kayak fishing, Eric Kaai | M /55 | No injury, shark nicked kayak | White shark |
| 2018-08-24 | USA ,Huntington Beach, Orange County | Swimming | male | M /14 | Shark bumped chest but no injury | 5' to 8' shark |
| 2018-07-14 | USA ,Trinidad Beach, Huboldt County | Wading | female | F /58 | Surf washed the dying shark against her foot PROVOKED INCIDENT | Salmon shark, juvenile |
| 2018-06-25 | USA ,Oceanside, San Diego County | Paddling | Julie Wolfe | F /57 | No injury to occupant, outrigger canoe and paddle damaged | White shark |
| 2018-02-18 | USA ,Dog Beach, Huntington Beach | Surfing | Joel Smith | M | No injury, shark bumped leg | 6' to 7' shark |
| 2017-12-30 | USA ,Drakes Estero, Point Reyes, Marin County | Surfing | Natalie Jones | F /35 | Foot bitten | |
| 2017-11-24 | USA ,Stillwater Cove, Monterey County | Spearfishing | Grigor Azatian | M /25 | Right leg bitten | White shark, 4.6 m |
| 2017-08-01 | USA ,Between Pescadero Point & Bean Hollow Beach, San Mateo County | Fishing | Kayak Fishing, Patrick Conroy | M | No injury, bow of kayak bitten | White shark, 10' |
| 2017-07-20 | USA ,Stearns Wharf, Santa Barbara | Kayaking | Bret Jackson | M /40 | No injury, kayak bitten | White shark, 11' to 13' |
| 2017-07-20 | USA ,Seal Rock, Goleta Beach, Santa Barbara | SUP | Rolf Geyling | M /50 | No injury, shark bit paddleboard | White shark, 8' to 10' |
| 2017-07-11 | USA ,Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz County | Kayaking | Steve Lawson | M | No injury, kayak bitten | White shark |
| 2017-05-05 | MEXICO ,Los Arbolitos, Cabo Pulmo | Snorkeling | Andres Rozada | M /33 | FATAL | |
| 2017-05-03 | USA ,Sunset Beach, Orange County | Surfing | Sophia Raab | F /18 | Laceration to thigh, likely caused by surfboard fin | Shark involvement highly doubtful |
| 2017-04-29 | USA ,San Onofre, San Diego County | Swimming | Leeanne Ericson | F | Major injury to posterior thigh | |
| 2017-03-18 | USA ,Monterey Bay | Kayaking | Brian Correira | M | No injury, kayak bitten | White shark |
| 2016-09-17 | USA ,Bunkers, Humboldt Bay, Eureka, Humboldt County | Surfing | Yuma | M /43 | No injury, board bitten | |
| 2016-09-01 | USA ,Refugio State Beach, Santa Barbara County | Spearfishing | Tyler McQuillen | M /22 | Two toes broken & lacerated | White shark, 8' to 10' |
| 2016-07-15 | USA ,Surfside, Orange County | Kite surfing | Lee Frees | M /61 | No injury, board damaged | White shark, 10' to 12' |
| 2016-07-08 | USA ,Capitola, Santa Cruz County | Fishing | Fishing for squid, Mark Davis | M | No injury. Hull bitten, tooth fragment recovered | White shark |
| 2016-07-07 | USA ,Off Palos Verdes peninsula, Los Angeles County | Fishing | 24' boat Shark Tagger Occupant Keith Poe | M | No injury. Hull bitten, tooth fragment recovered | White shark |
| 2016-05-29 | USA ,Corona Del Mar, Newport, Orange County | Swimming | Maria Korcsmaros | |||
| 2016-03-13 | USA ,Bolsa Chica State Park, Orange County | Surfing | unknown | Board reportedly bumped by shark. No injury | Shark involvement not confirmed | |
| 2015-10-13 | USA ,Off Leffingwell Landing, San Luis Obispo County | Fishing | Kayak fishing, Jordan Pavacich | M | No injury, shark rammed kayak repeatedly | Hammerhead sp. |
| 2015-09-24 | USA ,Horseshoe Rock, Santa Barbara County | Kayak fishing | Darren Kenney | M | No injury, kayak damaged | White shark, 19' |
| 2015-09-19 | USA ,Gaviota State Beach, Santa Barbara County | Kayak Fishing | Mark McCracken | M | No injury | Hammerhead shark |
| 2015-09-06 | USA ,El Pescador Beach, Los Angeles County | Stand-Up Paddleboarding | Caterina Gennaro | F /50 | No injury, shark struck board, tossing her into the sea | White shark, 11' to 12' |
| 2015-09-05 | USA ,Deer Creek Beach, Ventura County | Kayak Fishing | Dylan Marks | M /29 | Laceration to dorsum of foot by hooked shark PROVOKED INCIDENT | Hammerhead shark. |
| 2015-08-29 | USA ,Morro Strand State Beach, San Luis Obispo County | Surfing | Elinor Dempsey | F /54 | No injury, surfboard bitten | White shark, 11' to 12' |
| 2015-08-29 | USA ,Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo County | Surfing | Daniel Phillips | M /21 | No injury, shark struk sufer's leg and his board | White shark, 10' to 12' |
| 2015-08-18 | USA ,Santa Barbara County | Kayak Fishing | Connor Lyon | M /22 | No injury, kayak bitten | White shark, 13' |
| 2015-08-10 | USA ,Cortes Bank | Spearfishing | Richard Shafer | M /57 | Right hand bitten PROVOKED INCIDENT | Hammerhead shark. 6' to 7' |
| 2015-07-23 | USA ,La Jolla, San Diego County | Kayak Fishing | Austin Lorber | M /31 | No injury to occupant. Kayak bitten by gaffed shark. PROVOKED INCIDENT | Mako shark, 100-lb |
| 2015-07-10 | USA ,Huntington Beach, Orange County | Surfing | Danny Miskin | M /38 | No injury, shark bumped & damaged board | White shark, 7' |
| 2015-07-08 | USA ,Huntington Beach, Orange County | Treading water | Eugene Finney | M /39 | Laceration to back | Shark involvement not cofirmed |
| 2015-06-13 | USA ,Off San Diego | Elke Specker | F | Severe laceration to leg | Mako shark | |
| 2014-12-28 | USA ,Montaña de Oro State Park, San Luis Obispo County | Surfing | Kevin Swanson | M /50 | Injury to hip/leg | White shark, 8' to 10' |
| 2014-11-17 | USA ,Franklin Point, San Mateo County | Boat: occupants: Matt Mitchell & 2 other people | Shark bumped boat, no injury to occupants | White shark | ||
| 2014-10-19 | USA ,Leadbetter Beach, Santa Barbara County | Canoeing | Tara Burnley | F | No injury to occupant, canoe bitten | |
| 2014-10-03 | USA ,Santa Barbara County | Kayaking | Ryan Howell | M | No injury to occupant, shark/s holded kayak | White shark, 18' to 20' |
What can surfers do to reduce the risk of shark attacks in California?
Surfers in California can mitigate the risk of shark attacks by steering clear of known shark habitats and avoiding surfing alone. It’s also recommended not to wear bright colors or shiny jewelry that could attract sharks, and to always heed local warnings about shark activity.
How can I help someone who has been attacked by a shark in California?
If you encounter someone who has been attacked by a shark in California, the immediate response should be to ensure the victim’s safety by getting them out of the water. Then promptly dial 911 to notify the local authorities and medical services.
How does California monitor shark activity?
In California, shark activity is meticulously monitored using a variety of methods. These include aerial surveys, tagging programs, and public sighting reports which collectively help in tracking the movement and behavior of sharks in California waters.
