Great White Shark Attack Leaves Australian Surfer 'Fighting For His Life' (Watch)
An Australian surfer is hospitalized and "fighting for his life" after suffering a great white shark attack this morning in New South Wales.
The victim is a 44-year-old father of two, Toby Begg. Reports say the shark was around 4 meters or 13 feet long.
Witnesses say he fought the shark for around "30 seconds" before trying to swim back to shore with the help of other surfers and beachgoers.
9News Sydney captions the post above:
"A father is clinging to life after being bitten by a 4 metre shark at Port Macquarie. The attack has sent the area into shock as surfers ran to help."
According to CNN and 9News, his legs got the worst of the attack. Luckily, an ER doctor was also surfing and helped attend to Begg's injuries until paramedics arrived and airlifted him to the hospital.
“[He is in] a serious condition with life threatening injuries, sustained from the lower leg injuries, and also significant blood loss,” said NSW Police Chief Inspector Martin Burke.
“I have never seen anything like it. His foot ripped off and basically, he was bleeding everywhere,” said an unnamed teenager, CNN reported.
According to 9News, safety measures including SMART drumlines, which "intercept sharks beyond the surf," are installed at the beach.
"This great white wasn't tagged and managed to slip right through those safety measures," said reporter James Wilson.
According to the Australian Shark Incident Database, there were 10 shark encounters in New South Wales in 2022, resulting in seven injuries and one death, CNN reported.
The shark bit through his shortboard which you can see here.
Lighthouse Beach is currently closed.
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