SHARK hunters and fisheries experts in Australia and South Africa have been asked by the Hong Kong Government to provide help in the event of shark attacks this summer. A shark hunt funded and co-ordinated by the Government is being considered by a special working committee developing a ''shark attack rapid response strategy''. A year ago, a hair salon owner died after having his leg bitten off while swimming in shallow water at Sheung Sz Wan in Sai Kung. A spate of shark sightings and another fatal attack days later on an elderly man at Silverstrand Beach, also in Sai Kung, caused widespread alarm. Dozens of baits were set in waters off Sai Kung in an unsuccessful bid to catch what was believed to be a massive, rogue tiger shark. In the past few months, government officials from five departments have been quietly honing strategy in anticipation of shark attacks during the most popular swimming months of June, July, August and September. The Deputy Secretary for Recreation and Culture, Rachel Cartland, this month asked Australian shark hunter Vic Hislop whether he would be prepared to come to Hong Kong on a shark hunt if the need arose. Confidential requests were also sent to the Natal Shark Board in South Africa and the Fisheries Management Authority in Australia. ''We are investigating the feasibility of recruiting a shark fisherman,'' a senior government source said yesterday. ''The committee has decided that if any shark fishing is to be done, it would only be after an attack and not before.'' Mrs Cartland, who chairs the committee of officials from the Agriculture and Fisheries Department, the City and New Territories Administration, Regional Services and the Government Flying Service, is receiving advice from marine life expert Dr Yvonne Sadovy of the Hong Kong University. Dr Sadovy said she was not convinced shark hunts were effective. She said experts knew little about the sharks' ecosystem, adding that there was no conclusive evidence to show that rogue sharks returned to the same place for repeat attacks. Mrs Cartland said the Government had not yet reached a policy decision on whether to mount a shark hunt, but was prepared to respond quickly to an attack. ''It clearly would be a difficult project because of the fact that many of these sharks move fast and could be out of the area quickly after an attack,'' she said.
