Barak Zach z”l confirmed victim of Hadera shark attack tragedy

Barak Zach, z”l, has been officially identified as the victim of the fatal shark attack that occurred near the Shark Beach area along the Hadera River.

The confirmation came late Tuesday night after police divers and the Fire Department’s elite Flame Unit recovered partial remains from the water and surrounding area.

The findings were transferred to the Abu Kabir Institute of Forensic Medicine, where DNA testing conclusively identified Zach.

Zach The victim is a 40-year-old man from Petah Tikva, married and a father of children - a self-described shark enthusiast, who was fishing near the mouth of the Hadera River after work when he was pulled under by the predator.

Yesterday the authorities were using marine police boats and jet skis, drones, underwater GoPro cameras and metal detectors for scans along the coast.

There are credible eyewitness testimonies that saw the man being devoured by the sharks.

This rare incident occurred in the last hour off the coast of Hadera, near Fishermen’s Beach and the Hadera River estuary, an area known for the presence of sharks due to the relatively warm waters at the estuary compared to the open sea.

It appears that a diver fishing for fish attracted the sharks with the smell of blood.