The species of shark is as-yet undetermined. Photo: Gerald Schömbs // Unsplash
A Western Australian surfer was bitten by a shark this week. The incident comes on the heels of a pair of fatal shark encounters in the Australian state earlier this year.
As ABC reports, authorities received a report of a “shark incident” at Glenfield Beach, roughly 250 miles north of Perth, at around 9:45 a.m. The surfer, a man in his 50s identified by St. John Ambulance as Mel Ismail, was rushed to nearby Geraldton Health Campus. A Western Australia Country Health Service (WACHS) spokesperson described the man as in serious but stable condition.
Following the incident, the beach has been closed and residents asked to avoid the area. According to ABC, officials removed a badly damaged surfboard from the scene, which will be used to determine the species of shark involved.
“I do understand the victim is a well-known surfer amongst the community,” said Geraldton MP and Shadow Fisheries Minister Kirrilee Warr. “We’re really close-knit and when something like this happens, it does ripple. Those first responders, they would have been confronted with quite a scene, so I do hope that they are also receiving some support in and after this event.”
There have been two fatal shark attacks in Western Australia this year. On May 16, Steven Mattaboni was spearfishing at a coral reef off the coast of Rottnest Island, near Perth, when he was killed by a 13-foot great white shark. Then, in June, 35-year-old Daniel Turpin was killed by a suspected bull shark while spearfishing near Michaelmas Island, off the coast of Albany.
