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Yet another surfer has suffered a shark bite in South Australia. On Tuesday afternoon, a 64-year-old man was bitten on the leg off the Eyre Peninsula, on the west coast of the state.
The encounter occurred around 200m offshore at Blackspoint, near Elliston. Incredibly, Sky News reports that the victim managed to make his own way back to land and up the nearby cliffs. According to South Australia’s Ambulance Service, he then refused to be transported by ambulance and instead opted to drive himself to nearby Elliston Hospital. From there, a plane was sent bring him back to Royal Adelaide hospital for further treatment. His injuries are believed to be non-life threatening.
This is the sixth in a series of recent shark encounters in South Australia. In May, surfer Simon Baccanello was killed at Walkers Rock Beach near Elliston on Eyre Peninsula. In October, Tod Gendle was killed while surfing at Granites, a popular break south of Streaky Bay. That same month, Pam Cook was injured in the leg while swimming near the jetty at Beachport. Bridgette O’Shannessy suffered serious injuries when she was bitten on the head near the jetty at Port Noarlunga in November. Most recently, 15-year-old Khai Cowley was killed by a shark at Ethel Beach in the Innes National Park on the Yorke Peninsula.
