Austrian Man Killed by Shark During "Scuba Adventures" Expedition

An Austrian man who was bitten by a shark south of Fort Lauderdale on Sunday has died, according to a Scientific American report.

Markus Groh, a lawyer from Vienna, died just hours after being rushed to a hospital by a United States Coast Guard helicopter. He was 49.

Austrian media outlets reported that he was bitten in the leg, but that report has yet to be confirmed. Miami-Dade Medical Examiner's office stated that his death was an accident, and it is not yet know what type of shark attacked.

Groh was on vacation and diving from a boat off the coast of Riviera Beach when the incident occurred. The tour group he was sailing, Florida-based Scuba Adventures, commonly advertises underwater expeditions to find sharks and have close visibility of them. Sharks are attracted with bait, typically fish chum, and divers go down into the water without cages.

As a former high-school lifeguard, I've only worked at swimming pools and recreation centers, and never had any experience with kids being attacked by sharks. But when I was in training I was trained for lifeguarding any type of swimming venue, and there are some very important pointers I remember to this day.

The first and most important rule is to never swim where sharks are known to inhabit. This is the rule Mr. Groh and Scuba Adventures so carelessly broke. It's a simple rule, but amazingly it doesn't seem to sink in with everybody. It's simple: if you swim near sharks, and especially if you bait them with food, there's a greater chance you'll turn end up being their lunch. Don't do it.

Also, watch other fish. If you see schools of fish swimming away from an area at the same time, take notice and follow their lead. And if you're wearing shiny jewelry, take it off before you get in the water. Shiny objects attract the eyes of sharks, and they might mistake your "bling-bling" for the shiny scales of a prey fish and make you their lunch.