Chances of a shark attack highest in South Carolina of any state in lower 48

Study from University of West Florida shows Charleston beaches are the most dangerous

If the theme song from “Jaws” runs through your head the next time you take a dip in the ocean at a South Carolina beach, you probably shouldn’t ignore it. A comprehensive study by the University of West Florida shows that swimmers are far more likely to be attacked by sharks in South Carolina waters than anywhere in the continental United States.

While Florida beaches get plenty of publicity for shark attacks, South Carolina is where the true danger lies, according to Erich Ritter of the University of West Florida. More shark attacks occur per year at beaches in Florida than South Carolina, but when taking into account the number of people and number of days spent swimming, the numbers don’t bode well for Palmetto State beach-goers.

Florida has more suitable swimming days than South Carolina because of the weather, so more shark attacks occur there, but that doesn’t mean the risk is greater. Rather than focusing on the total number of shark attacks, the study used the number of people who enter the ocean, according to the U.S. Lifesaving Association, which keeps a tally on beach visitors across the nation. Along with the number of shark attacks at each locale, this produced the shark attack rate, showing where an attack is more likely to occur.

According to the study, the most-likely place to be attacked by a shark is Folly Beach and other Charleston-area beaches. Swimmers there are three times more likely to have an unpleasant shark encounter than swimmers in Volusia County, Fla. – which includes Daytona Beach — commonly referred to as the “shark attack capital of the world,” and eight times more likely than any other Florida beaches.

One theory about why South Carolina beaches pose such a greater risk than Florida is because of the vast estuaries created by the Cooper, Edisto, Salkehatchie and Coosawhatchie river systems, which make up prime hunting and nursing grounds for sharks. Florida’s St. Johns River features such habitats as well, but far fewer than South Carolina’s Lowcountry.

To put Charleston’s beaches in perspective, it is 34 times more likely to be attacked by a shark there than anywhere else in the state. Myrtle Beach isn’t the safest place to swim, either. Swimmers here face a four-time greater risk than those swimming in the mid-coast region of the state.