A Swiss couple went for a swim at dawn on Thursday at Kylies beach, in New South Wales’ Crowdy Bay national park. A three-metre bull shark attacked the woman first. Her partner tried to save her, and it attacked him too.
Emergency services were called at about 6.30am. The woman, 25, died at the scene. The man, 26, was airlifted to John Hunter hospital, where he was in a stable condition on Friday, the hospital confirmed.
NSW Ambulance Insp Kirran Mowbray told the Nine Network the man “has done everything he could to get them both into shore and yell out for assistance to a bystander who was there”. The bystander tied her swimmers around his leg as a tourniquet. “She’s essentially saved his life and bought him time before [paramedics] can get there,” Mowbray said.
Beaches reopen
Surf Life Saving NSW reopened Kylies and the nearby North Haven and Crowdy Bay beaches at 12.30pm on Friday. A spokesperson said jetski and drone surveillance since the attack had not found any concerning marine life nearby. Drones will keep watching the area over the weekend, particularly at Camden Haven and Crowdy Head, with hot weather forecast to bring big crowds. Nippers, the children’s surf program, was set to go ahead on Sunday.
The chief executive, Steven Pearce, told 2GB radio the incident happened in an area so remote that there were no lifeguard services. Police are reviewing GoPro footage from the scene.
The Department of Primary Industries put five “smart” drumlines at Kylies beach after the attack. They send an alert when a shark or other animal takes a baited hook, and the animal is then tagged, moved 1km offshore and tracked. None have caught a shark at Crowdy Bay, Port Macquarie to the north or Forster to the south since the attack, the department said, and no drone has spotted one. Its scientists concluded from forensic analysis that a large bull shark, over three metres long, was likely involved.
What experts say
Experts say the shark is unlikely to pose an ongoing threat. Dr Brianna Le Busque, an environmental science and psychology researcher at the University of South Australia, called it “a really horrific freak incident” and said there was no sign the shark would keep biting people. She worried about comparisons to Jaws. “It’s likely this shark felt particularly threatened, something happened, that’s why it lashed out twice,” she said.
Rob Harcourt, an emeritus professor of marine ecology at Macquarie University, said a double attack was “quite unusual” but could happen when sharks hunt prey and try to deter competitors.
Other NSW beaches closed on Friday after numerous bull shark sightings and bait balls, where fish bunch into a tight defensive mass. Port Macquarie Hastings ALS Lifeguards urged swimmers and surfers to stay alert. NSW SharkSmart advice is to take extra care at dawn and dusk, when bull and tiger sharks are more active, and to swim between the flags at patrolled beaches.
The Swiss consul general confirmed that one Swiss national died and another was injured, and said the consulate is supporting the relatives. MidCoast council mayor Claire Pontin extended her condolences to the families.
In September, Mercury Psillakis was fatally mauled by a 3.5-metre great white at Long Reef beach in Sydney.
