INQUISITR.COM / News & Politics

Great White Shark Bites Surfer ‘To The Bone’ In Australia

By Dustin Wicksell
Published on: 01:24 PST, Sep 4, 2015

A man in his 60s was airlifted from the NSW mid north coast in Australia after a great white shark attacked him, lacerating his leg “to the bone.”

David Quinlivan, 65, was on a surf ski at Black Head beach, north of Forster, when he ran afoul of the white shark. Around noon on Friday, the shark attacked him, according to the Guardian, knocking him off his surf ski and biting into his left ankle. Quinlivan fell into the water but was able to get back aboard his ski and make his way to shore following the attack. Once close to the beach, he alerted bystanders, who helped him out of the water.

Due to the remote nature of the area where the attack took place, Quinlivan had to be reached by four-wheel drive ambulances. After being treated on the beach for lacerations deep enough to reveal bone, he was airlifted to Newcastle’s John Hunter hospital.

Though it was at first unclear what species of shark was responsible for Quinlivan’s injuries, as the ABC reports, a Westpac helicopter spokesman asserted that he identified the animal as a great white. Quinlivan’s encounter is just the latest to transpire along the Australian coastline, as more than 12 attacks have been attributed to great white sharks this year.

The situation has reached a fevered pitch in the Ballina area, where residents have overwhelmingly voted in favor of a shark cull to curb the predators. Some locals have even threatened to take matters into their own hands and attack the sharks in kind if the government refuses to step in. Between five and seven great white sharks (some of exceptional size) have been spotted in the region, regularly patrolling its waters.

More recently, a fisherman operating off Sydney’s Northern Beaches area was stunned when he encountered a massive white shark earlier this week, which circled his boat for upwards of 15 minutes. Cam Sutherland was able to film the shark, as the Inquisitr previously reported, and anglers estimated its size as between 5.5 and six meters long.

Earlier this year, beaches in Newcastle closed for an extended stretch of time amid repeated sightings of massive sharks. Lifeguards described one of the sharks as “of a size that has not been seen before,” saying that it exhibited the girth of a small elephant. Though it is unclear if that animal is the same one sighted this week off Sydney, concerns over the presence of great white sharks along the Australian coast have nonetheless reached a heightened state.

[Photo by Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter via the ABC]

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