Shark Week has begun and this year, Discovery Channel is changing things up for their 31 st instalment by including a new feature film ‘Capsized: Blood in the Water’ based on a 1982 true story.
The yacht called the ‘Trashman’ was headed to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. from Portland, Maine to reunite with its owner, according to the United Press International that reported the incident in 1982.
During its journey, the yacht was capsized in a storm and sunk in the Atlantic, just off the coast of North Carolina, close to Morehead City— an area known for having sharks. The crew managed to get in a lifeboat and were soon surrounded by tiger sharks that followed them when one of the crew members became injured in the storm and started bleeding.
After being stranded on the raft for 18 hours, two of the crew members Deborah Scaling Kiley and Brad Cavanagh, the only survivors, were rescued by a Soviet cargo freighter. Two of the crew members had gone overboard deliriously, while the third succumbed to her injuries.
Scaling remembers realizing how the captain was afraid of the ocean during the trip, after he frequently made excuses to go below deck. Scaling and Cavanagh were the only capable sailors on board, according to Popular Mechanics , a popular science and technology magazine.
The two could do little once the storm hit them. Food, water, and supplies were lost.
#Capsized: Blood in the Water is based on terrifying real-life events. Don’t miss #SharkWeek’s first-ever feature film starring @joshduhamel and @tylerjblackburn, Wednesday July 31 at 9p on @Discovery and Discovery GO. pic.twitter.com/0wikCNGBxe
— Shark Week (@SharkWeek) July 23, 2019
The trailer, released on the Shark Week twitter account, shows the intensity of the situation as the stranded crew tries to survive while being hunted by sharks.
The film stars Josh Duhamel, Tyler Blackburn, and Beau Garrett. It will be released on July 31 as part of the Shark Week programming.
Since its first instalment in 1988, Discovery Channel has been known for airing shark programming in an attempt to conserve the species.
The film, however, is slightly different from Shark Week’s usual fare.
Shark expert Stephen Kaijura, from Florida Atlantic University, believes that films like this focuses on the “sensational aspects” instead of the science, according to NBC news .
“Here you have a really diverse group of animals — they are a fascinating group because of their diversity and evolutional history,” Kaijura says. “But so much of that is ignored with shows called ‘Blood in the Water’ or ‘Danger Beach.’ You’re missing out on an incredible opportunity here.”
Meanwhile, Twitter user @Kirtie_ie notes the difference in programming, tweeting, “Serious question here, # SharkWeek for the years I watched it has promoted education and tried to dispel the # jaws legacy. Seems like you’re going backwards with your programming?”
Another Twitter user, @FreudParallel, says that the film is not a fictional Hollywood movie since it is based on real events.
“It’s good for people not to fear a 30 foot man hunting great white while they’re at the beach, but it’s also important for people to remain sensitive to the fact that sharks are dangerous.”
Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2019
