Two Hawaii women’s tale of survival in the Pacific Ocean appeared to be sinking Wednesday as more Coast Guard officials, sailing experts and scientists emerged to poke holes in the sensational story.
Among the claims that have been cast into doubt are a tiger shark attack that allegedly lasted more than six hours and a call one of the women’s mothers made to the Coast Guard, in addition to doubts about the condition of their ship before setting off on the voyage.
"I'm shocked they were going to Tahiti," Desiree Hattori, who has known one of the women, Jennifer Appel, for years, told Hawaii News Now. "Her boat wasn't in the best shape."
They were picked up by the U.S. Navy near Japan last week after being spotted and towed by a Taiwanese fishing vessel.
Appel and Tasha Fuiava’s description of 20- to 30-foot tiger sharks ramming their boat in a coordinated attack for more than six hours also appeared to draw scrutiny, as scientists who study sharks told The Associated Press that sort of behavior has never been recorded and that tiger sharks grow to only about 17 feet in length.