Max Marsden: Pro surfer loses chunk of arm after being mauled by 5ft shark in ‘extremely rare’ attack
GERALDTON, AUSTRALIA: A professional surfer is recovering after being attacked by a shark at a secluded beach in Western Australia's mid-west. Max Marsden, 30, was enjoying an early morning surf session with his friend Danny Williams at Lucy's Beach, about 12 miles south of Geraldton, when the predatorattacked him and took out a chunk of his right arm on Sunday, April 23.
Williams, who witnessed the incident from the shoreline, noted that the attack took place at around 7.30 am. "Max was in front of me, and he was just sitting out the back and a shark came out underneath him and attacked him," he told ABC. Williams said that Marsden's right arm was pinned to the surfboard by the shark, which is believed to be a 5ft-long bronze whaler. Marsden escaped further harm after he fought back and punched the shark before swimming back to shore.
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'He's still got a few bits of teeth still in this cut'
After covering Marsden's wound, the duo walked 1.2 miles to their car and drove through rough terrain to a waiting ambulance that rushed the surfer to a hospital. "He was just paddling, like going through the pain. He handled it like a champ,” Williams said as he described the incident as a "surreal" experience.
After initial treatment at Geraldton Health Campus, Marsden was flown to Perth for surgery at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital on Sunday night. William said that Marsden was recovering well but “he's still got a few bits of teeth still in this cut, from the sounds of things that just ripped all the muscle off his bone."
Lucy’s Beach was closed on Sunday as the state’s Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development launched an investigation into the incident. City of Greater Geraldton Mayor Shane Van Styn told ABC the attack was an “extremely rare and isolated event”. “In Geraldton, this is the first shark attack in quite some time," he said, adding, “The location where the shark attack took place is a very isolated place, so any monitoring of it would probably be unfeasible. We are just grateful that by all accounts and early reports, Marsden's injuries haven't been too significant in this instance."
Similar incident
The attack on Marsden comes just months after a 16-year-old died in a shark attack when she jumped into a river to see a pod of dolphins. Stella Berry was mauled by a bull shark in front of her friends when they were swimming in the Swan River. She was hauled to safety by a heroic male onlooker, but she succumbed to her injuries. Bull sharks are a dangerous species that are frequently spotted lurking in Australian waterways. Bull Sharks are ranked third on the list of the most dangerous sharks in the world, according to AZ Animals.
