Shark News

Shark encounter leaves surfer with shaken nerves and damaged board

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 28 March, 2016 - A surfer in Cronulla is thankful to be OK after a shark grabbed his board and dragged him through the water. Luckily for the man a wave popped up and he was able to spin and ride it into shore and away from the shark.

Roie Smyth told Yahoo! News that he felt like a 'lucky survivor' after his brush with death.

“I thought he grabbed my leg and started pulling me under and then, bang, and that’s when I seen him,” he told Yahoo!. When the wave popped up Smyth was able to get away. “I was like, yeah, I must be blessed.”

Brad Whittaker, a Sutherland Shire Council spokesperson said a member of the North Cronulla Shark Tower team saw a splash and a fin and that the wave tipped the momentum in Smyth’s favour to escape.

“That wave probably put him off; just felt him spin back under the water,” Whittaker said.

Australia has had a tough time lately with a spate of shark attacks and the country is understandably jittery.

As of Monday both Cronulla and North Cronulla beaches were still closed and should reopen on Tuesday if no more sharks are sighted.

The species of shark has not been identified.