Shark encounter at Ala Moana surf spot just the latest in a string on Oahu’s south shore

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Ala Moana Bowls is one of the most popular surf spots on Oahu’s south shore.

It’s also where a large shark was spotted in the waves during a surf competition on Friday morning.

Two surfers in the Hawaii Surfing Association state championship thought they had it to themselves at about 11 a.m. Friday. But instead, they were joined by a 12-foot shark thrashing a few feet away.

Twelve year-old Kiki Oshiro Kaneshiro had just paddled in from her heat before them.

“It was super scary,” she said. “I feel really bad for those girls. I really hope they’re okay and not really traumatized by anything, because I’m scared right now talking about it.”

No one was hurt, but the rest of the day’s heats were canceled. Shark warning signs went up, and lifeguards on jet skis warned surfers at nearby spots.

“Ala Moana is notorious for sharks,” said longtime area boater, surfer and fisherman David Kuwada. “It’s the perfect scenario. It’s like the fresh water coming out (of the Ala Wai Canal) with all the feeder fish and then the river mouth right there coming out to the ocean.”

Just a few weeks ago, Surfline captured a large shark swimming inside the lineup at Bowls. It’s unclear if it’s the same one.

Another reef shark was spotted in the shallows at Kewalos.

A much bigger shark attacked Mike Morita, 58, as he surfed Kewalos about two weeks ago.

A day after that attack, a 15-foot tiger shark was seen swimming in the Kewalo Basin Boat Harbor.

And then a few days after that, Kuwada witnessed a tiger shark attacked a turtle in the same area.

“Lately it seems like the behavior has been a little more aggressive in shallow waters, like a lot of people are seeing it lately,” Kuwada said.

Surfers also report recent sightings in Waikiki and the Diamond Head area that weren’t caught on camera. And on social media. fishers say there’s been an increase in sharks all around Oahu.

Some speculate that it’s due to a return to warmer ocean temperatures tied to an El Nino climate pattern, but the National Weather Service isn’t expecting El Nino to return until this summer.

Meanwhile, a DLNR graph shows a general increase in shark incidents over the years in Hawaii. October is typically the month with the most sightings.