Two people attacked by sharks in Australia

IANS  |  Canberra 

Two people were bitten by on Monday while off the same stretch of Western Australias southwest coast.

A 37-year-old man was bitten on the leg at in Gracetown, near the Margaret River Pro tournament, on early Monday morning but managed to surf back to shore, reports

His friends used a rope from the victim's board as a tourniquet and provided first aid until emergency crews arrived.

The victim was flown to where he remains in a stable condition and will have surgery, authorities said.

A second man Jason Longrass, 41, was bitten while off in the afternoon.

Longrass told reporters that he had not heard about the first attack and did not know the beach was closed, saying he thought he was lucky to find it so empty.

The Margaret River Pro, about 15 km away from the first attack but also close to the second, was suspended for about one hour before resuming with enhanced safety measures including skis and drones, reported.

There have been three fatal attacks in the area since 2004, when was fatally mauled by a great white.

Chris Boyd, 35, was killed at nearby Umbies surf break in 2013 and Nick Edwards, 31, also died after a attack while at nearby South Point in 2010. All three were surfers.

--IANS

ksk/mr

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Mon, April 16 2018. 15:18 IST