The surfer suffered a puncture wound in the upper left part of his chest…
msgstr “News update on October 20.”
It was on October 18 that the surfer named Giulia Manfrini (36 years old) died after being hit by the “beak” of a Needlefish and not a Whitefish (Xiphias gladius), as Indonesian media said. It all happened while surfing in the Regency waters of the Mentawai Islands, West Sumatra province.
“The information we received from the head of the Southwest district of Siberut was that a foreign citizen of Italian nationality suffered an accident while surfing,” said the head of the Mentawai Islands Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), Lahmudin Siregar, when contacted with him in. Padang on Friday (October 18).
Lahmudin said the unfortunate incident happened when Manfrini was catching waves in Bengbeng, Masokut Island, Pasakiat Taileleu village, southwest Siberut district, at about 9:30 in the morning and tied himself in the tourist’s chest,” said he.
Giulia Manfrini and Mentawai
Based on information received from the Siberut Police, the victim asked for help by calling two witnesses, also foreigners, named Alexandre Ribas and Massimo Ferro. The two witnesses quickly helped and provided first aid and took the victim to the Pei Pei Pasakiat Taileleu Community Health Center. Unfortunately, the victim’s life could not be saved.
“Giuli lived a dream life, spending several seasons during the Portuguese winter, surfing and snowboarding around the world. Giulia was one of the owners of a travel agency called awavetravel. …”
Our thoughts are with all of Giulia’s family and friends.
RIP Giulia Manfrini.
The Indian Ocean Needlefish can measure up to 1.5 meters and weigh more than 5 kg.
It is worth remembering that an Indonesian fisherman had his neck pierced by a stingray during 2019 and luckily he was not fatally injured, after undergoing a successful operation. Also last year in 2023, an Australian surfer named Steven Kezic’s was in Mentawai and saw his nose pierced by a species of “rough fish”. Needlefish are generally not aggressive, and are often attracted to fluorescent or luminous objects. In the case of shad, they are considered the fastest fish in the Ocean, reaching 4 meters in length and 500 kg in weight. There have been some accidents involving tourists or fishermen in Indonesian waters, although very few.
Statements from the nearby resort where Gulia was staying regarding this unfortunate accident:
