Three separate attacks in just over 24 hours
Police said a man and a boy were critically injured and another boy escaped unharmed in three separate shark attacks off Sydney in just over 24 hours, according to a police statement reported by the Associated Press.
The first incident in the sequence happened Monday afternoon off North Steyne Beach, on the Pacific Ocean coast in the northern suburb of Manly. Police said a surfer in his 20s was bitten on a leg at 6:20 p.m. local time.
Bystanders pulled the surfer from the water before an ambulance took him to a hospital in a critical condition, police said.
Jump Rock incident inside Sydney Harbor
Police said that on Sunday, a 12-year-old boy suffered serious injuries to both legs after jumping from a six-meter (20-foot) high ledge known as Jump Rock near Shark Beach inside Sydney Harbor in the eastern suburb of Vaucluse.
Police credited the boy’s three friends with saving his life by jumping from the cliff during the attack and dragging him back to shore. Supt. Joseph McNulty told reporters: “The actions of his mates who have gone into the water to pull him out have been nothing but brave.”
McNulty added: “Those actions of those young men are brave under the circumstances and very confronting injuries for those boys to see,” he said.
News media reported that the boy lost both legs in the attack.
Dee Why Beach attack leaves board damaged
Around noon on Monday, police said an 11-year-old boy was on a surfboard that was attacked by a shark at Dee Why Beach, an ocean beach north of Manly. Police said the shark bit off a chunk of the board, but the boy escaped uninjured.
Closures and suspected shark species
Local authorities said Sydney’s northern beaches, including North Steyne and Dee Why, would remain closed until further notice. The report said the beaches near where the attacks occurred have some form of shark protection netting, but it was not immediately clear where the attacks occurred in relation to that netting.
Authorities suspect bull sharks are responsible for at least the first two attacks. Police had warned after the first attack that recent heavy rain over Sydney had increased the amount of fresh and murky water inside the harbor, heightening the bull shark danger.
Dee Why Beach is close to Ocean Reef Beach, where a 57-year-old surfer was killed by a suspected white shark last September, the report said. The report also said that in November, a 25-year-old Swiss tourist was killed and her partner was seriously injured trying to save her as they swam off a national park north of Sydney.