4 shark attacks in 2 days prompt dozens of Australia beach closures – National

The closures were announced after a man was bitten while surfing near Port Polmer, about 450 kilometres north of Sydney, earlier on Tuesday.

According to New South Wales (NSW) police, the 39-year-old sustained a wound to his chest after a shark bit his surfboard. The man was sent to a hospital where he was treated and later discharged, authorities confirmed, adding that four beaches in the area were closed following the attack.

In the wake of back-to-back incidents, beach authorities advised locals to stay away from the shore.

“If you’re thinking about going for a swim, think of going to a local pool because at this stage, we’re advising that beaches are unsafe,” Steven Pearce, the chief executive of Surf Life Saving New South Wales, told reporters on Tuesday.

“We have such poor water quality that it’s really conducive to some bull shark activity.”

Following the attacks, the organization announced it had “more than doubled” its service along Sydney’s northern beaches.

The closures come at the height of summer in the Southern Hemisphere, a time when beaches across Australia are typically busy with locals and visitors.

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On Monday, emergency services were called to Manly Beach in Sydney after a surfer was bitten by a shark.

Eyewitness Max White told state broadcaster ABC that another surfer kept the man alive using his board’s leg rope as a makeshift tourniquet to stop the bleeding.

“He was breathing, but he was unconscious, and we just … tried to keep him awake,” he told the outlet. Paramedics treated the man for serious leg injuries before taking him to hospital in critical condition.

Also on Monday, a 10-year-old boy escaped without injury after a shark knocked him off his surfboard and bit a chunk out of it. The day before, another boy was left in critical condition after being bitten by a shark at a city beach.

All beaches in the Northern Beaches, a council area close to Sydney’s northern coastline, will remain closed until further notice, police said.

The shark attacks follow heavy rains that muddy the waters, creating ideal conditions for bull sharks to circle.

Sharks do not usually target humans, but the darker water limits their visibility, thereby increasing the risk of them swimming into objects or people in the water, at which point “they defensively or curiously bite and then bite again,” Chris Pepin-Neff, an academic and expert on shark behaviour, wrote in the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper.

Heavy rain also increases sewage runoff, attracting baitfish that sharks feed on, he added. Experts believe, but have not confirmed, that bull sharks may be responsible for the attacks.

Australia typically sees around 20 shark attacks per year, with fewer than three of those being fatalities, according to data from conservation groups.

— With files from Reuters

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