Key Findings
- Volusia County ranks No. 2 nationally with a per-capita rate of 50.27 per 100,000, accounting for 36.6% of all Florida incidents and 23% of all 1,318 national attacks, more than doubling Brevard County, Florida’s second-highest county by total attacks.
- Volusia’s per-capita rate is 8.89 times the Florida state average and 106.6 times as high as Charlotte County. Its 303 attacks more than double Brevard County’s total and exceed Brevard and Palm Beach combined.
- Representing just 4.1% of Florida’s coastal population, Volusia accounts for 36.6% of the state’s total attacks, a concentration ratio unlike any other county in the dataset.
Florida is America’s shark attack capital, and within Florida, Volusia County stands alone, recording 303 confirmed attacks and a per-capita rate of 50.27 per 100,000 to rank No. 2 nationally. Volusia accounts for 23% of all attacks recorded across all 68 counties, more than Brevard and Palm Beach combined, making it the most attack-concentrated Spring Break destination in the country.
The study conducted by Bader Law cross-referenced shark attack records from the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File against U.S. Census Bureau population estimates across 68 coastal counties in six Spring Break states.
Top 10 Florida Coastal Counties by Per-Capita Attack Rate
| FL Rank | County | Population | Total Attacks | Attacks per 100,000 | National Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Volusia | 602,772 | 303 | 50.27 | 2 |
| 2 | Martin | 165,666 | 37 | 22.33 | 5 |
| 3 | Brevard | 658,447 | 147 | 22.33 | 6 |
| 4 | Monroe | 80,908 | 17 | 21.01 | 7 |
| 5 | Franklin | 12,979 | 2 | 15.41 | 10 |
| 6 | Indian River | 172,139 | 22 | 12.78 | 11 |
| 7 | Gulf | 15,876 | 2 | 12.60 | 12 |
| 8 | St. Johns | 334,928 | 42 | 12.54 | 13 |
| 9 | St. Lucie | 390,670 | 35 | 8.96 | 18 |
| 10 | Nassau | 104,376 | 6 | 5.75 | 24 |
Volusia County tops Florida with a per-capita rate of 50.27 per 100,000, more than twice second-ranked Martin County and third-ranked Brevard County and 8.89 times the state average, with the intra-state contrast reaching its starkest point against Charlotte County, Florida’s safest destination, whose rate is 106.6 times lower than Volusia’s.
Florida Coastal Counties Ranked by Total Shark Attacks
| FL Rank | County | Population | Total Attacks | Attacks per 100,000 | National Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Volusia | 602,772 | 303 | 50.27 | 2 |
| 2 | Brevard | 658,447 | 147 | 22.33 | 6 |
| 3 | Palm Beach | 1,582,055 | 76 | 4.80 | 30 |
| 4 | St. Johns | 334,928 | 42 | 12.54 | 13 |
| 5 | Duval | 1,055,159 | 40 | 3.79 | 37 |
| 6 | Martin | 165,666 | 37 | 22.33 | 5 |
| 7 | St. Lucie | 390,670 | 35 | 8.96 | 18 |
| 8 | Indian River | 172,139 | 22 | 12.78 | 11 |
| 9 | Monroe | 80,908 | 17 | 21.01 | 7 |
| 10 | Miami-Dade | 2,838,461 | 16 | 0.56 | 61 |
Volusia’s 303 attacks exceed the combined total of Florida’s next three counties by attack volume, Brevard, Palm Beach, and St. Johns, which together record 265 attacks across more than 2.57 million residents, while Miami-Dade’s 2.8 million population dilutes 16 incidents to just 0.56 per 100,000, illustrating how population size can mask meaningful attack counts entirely.
Volusia in the National Top 5 by Per-Capita Attack Rate
| Nat. Rank | County | State | Population | Total Attacks | Attacks per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hyde | North Carolina | 4,583 | 3 | 65.46 |
| 2 | Volusia | Florida | 602,772 | 303 | 50.27 |
| 3 | Kauai | Hawaii | 73,840 | 29 | 39.27 |
| 4 | Maui | Hawaii | 163,688 | 64 | 39.10 |
| 5 | Martin | Florida | 165,666 | 37 | 22.33 |
Volusia’s rate of 50.27 per 100,000 places it just 23% behind national leader Hyde County and stands as the only large-population county in America’s top 5, with its 602,772 residents dwarfing fellow top-5 counties like Hyde (4,583) and Kauai (73,840), proving that high attack volume in a mid-sized county carries as much statistical weight as any small-population anomaly.
Florida in Context: All Six Spring Break States
| Rank | State | Counties Analyzed | Total Attacks | % of All Attacks | Highest-Risk County (per 100k) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida | 26 | 827 | 62.7% | Volusia (50.27) |
| 2 | Hawaii | 6 | 158 | 12.0% | Kauai (39.27) |
| 3 | California | 16 | 124 | 9.4% | Humboldt (12.09) |
| 4 | South Carolina | 5 | 101 | 7.7% | Georgetown (12.11) |
| 5 | North Carolina | 8 | 64 | 4.9% | Hyde (65.46) |
| 6 | Texas | 7 | 44 | 3.3% | Matagorda (5.50) |
Florida dominates with 62.7% of all national attacks, yet does not claim the top-ranked county by per-capita rate. North Carolina contributes just 4.9% of total incidents but claims the most dangerous county nationally, proving that raw attack volume and per-capita risk tell fundamentally different stories across all six states.
Methodology
This study analyzed Volusia County, Florida, using shark attack data from the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File (ISAF) and population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. Per-capita attack rates were calculated per 100,000 residents. Volusia County’s data was contextualized against all 25 other Florida coastal counties, the national top 5 per-capita counties, and all six Spring Break states within the broader 68-county dataset.
Data Sources
Shark Attack Data: Florida Museum of Natural History, International Shark Attack File (ISAF): https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/shark-attacks/maps/na/usa/
Research Dataset: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1sSYxj6YDb5M5_n95me1Bh-55Od_ceiEqUuUSILcatmg/edit?gid=0#gid=0
Study by: https://baderlaw.com/
About Bader Law
Bader Law is a Georgia-based personal injury and workers’ compensation law firm dedicated to representing accident victims throughout the state. With a track record of securing over $350 million for clients in need, the firm combines deep legal expertise with a commitment to public safety awareness.
