Photo shows a shark swimming in a flooded street after a hurricane
| Photo shows a shark swimming in a flooded street after a hurricane | |
|---|---|
| MANIPULATED MEDIA | |
| "A photograph shows a shark swimming through a flooded residential street after a hurricane, including Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and Hurricane Harvey in 2017." | |
| Domain | Technology & Media |
| Tactic | Manipulation False Context |
| Era | Current |
| First seen | 2011 |
| Origin | A digitally altered image that circulated after Hurricane Irene in 2011 and has been reshared after nearly every major hurricane since |
| Last reviewed | 2026-10-27 |
| Further reading: books on Technology & Media | |
The photo of a shark swimming in a flooded street after a hurricane is one of the most recycled fake images on the internet. It appears to show the fin and body of a large shark gliding past houses and cars in floodwater. Each time a major hurricane strikes, the image is reshared with captions saying it was taken in the latest disaster zone, from New Jersey during Hurricane Sandy to Houston during Hurricane Harvey. Fact-checkers have found that the image is a composite. The shark was taken from a photograph of a great white shark following a kayak, published years earlier in a magazine.
What the evidence shows
- Composite. Image analysts identified the shark as having come from a well-known photograph of a great white shark swimming behind a kayak off South Africa, published in Africa Geographic in 2005.
- Recycling. The image circulated after Hurricane Irene in 2011, claiming to show Puerto Rico, then after Sandy in 2012, Harvey in 2017, Florence in 2018 and later storms.
- Real sharks. Sharks and other marine animals can occasionally enter flooded coastal areas, and some genuine videos exist, which helps the fake seem plausible.
- Repeat offenders. News outlets and fact-checkers have repeatedly debunked the image, and some journalists have been fooled into sharing it during breaking news.
Why it persists
Disasters create a flood of images and an appetite for dramatic visuals. People share striking photos quickly, often in good faith, before checking where they came from. The image's recurrence has become a running joke among journalists.
Lessons for readers
- Use reverse image search to check if a picture predates the event.
- Breaking news is the most common time for recycled images to spread.
- A plausible scenario does not make a specific image real.
- Be especially skeptical of viral disaster photos with no named photographer.
See also
- Videos show houses rising on hydraulic stilts above floods
- Sharpie-altered Hurricane Dorian map
- Pope Francis wore a white puffer jacket
Sources
- Alexis C. Madrigal, "Sorting the Real Sandy Photos From the Fakes," The Atlantic, October 29, 2012.
- Snopes, "Shark in Flooded Street," fact check (updated with each recurrence).