Want to take a dip in the sea but are too scared of sharks? There’s an app for that.
The Shark Spotters app was developed “to assist swimmers and surfers to be more shark smart at Cape Town’s beaches this summer”‚ the City of Cape Town said this week.
It is updated by on-duty Shark Spotters “in real time so users can be assured that they always have the most current information at their fingertips”.
Councillor Johan van der Merwe said: “We believe the Shark Spotters app will be an essential beach safety and information tool for all water users in Cape Town during the upcoming beach season.”
The app shows water users which flag is currently flying at beaches in the Mother City‚ and why. The flags denote poor spotting conditions due to cloud cover‚ shark sightings‚ an indication of water temperature‚ the lunar phase‚ and whether the shark exclusion barrier in Fish Hoek has been deployed or not.
It also gives information on “weather conditions‚ marine animal activity in the area (such as whales‚ seals‚ dolphins‚ sunfish etc.)‚ the details of amenities on the beaches‚ as well as short surf videos of isolated surf spots covered by the programme that do not have live web-cams in operation”.
The Shark Spotters app is available on iOS and Android platforms and is free to download.
– TMG Digital
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