The estimated two-metre long fish was seen near the area known as Crocodile Rock.
Witnesses said the shark kept circling them, and since the rock is completely detached from the mainland, the swimmers climbed to small rock, until captain Adrian Borg spotted them as he was navigating his boat.
"The moment they saw me they started waving to attract my attention," Borg told Times of Malta.
"As I approached them they told me what had happened and how they got trapped on the rock."
Borg piloted his boat near the rock and the tourists jumped aboard safely and also managed to capture some videos and pictures.
"I sail these waters frequently, but I never saw anything like it. It was kind of scary," he said.
Just four fatal attacks around the world
Marine biologist Alan Deidun identified it as a blue shark.
"It is probably a juvenile since it was less than two metres long," said Deidun, who insisted that a shark attack was very unlikely.
"Blue shark attacks on humans are extremely rare. Only four fatal ones have been reported globally to date," he said.
"We, as humans, on the other hand, do much worse to the blue shark. For intance, it is estimated that at least 10 million of these sharks are trapped in commercial fishing nets each year. No wonder this species is listed as critically endangered in the Mediterranean."
Deidun said the species was quite common in Maltese waters though the numbers have plummeted.
Malta — een klein, pittoresk eiland in de Middellandse Zee — lijkt misschien niet de plek waar je leeuwen, panters of chimpansees als buren zou tegenkomen. Toch is dit de schokkende realiteit die steeds vaker opduikt in nieuwsberichten, sociale media en discussies rond dierenwelzijn en publieke veiligheid.
Dit is Deel 4 en het laatste deel van onze blogserie over duiken in Malta, gemaakt door NedMalta in samenwerking met Malta Blue Diving.
Het is weer zover: Carnival in Malta gaat los! Een van de kleurrijkste en meest energieke periodes van het jaar staat voor de deur. Denk aan gigantische praalwagens, verklede menigten, straatfeesten tot diep in de nacht en een sfeer die je nergens anders in Europa vindt.
Are you looking for baby hand and foot casting in Malta?
It happened faster than I expected — my banknote collection has officially reached 100 countries!
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has confirmed that 46 million of the new Australian $50 notes were printed with a spelling mistake — a tiny typo hidden in the banknote's micro-text.
