Shark attack in Australia: first fatal attack on Gold Coast beaches in 60 years

An Australian man was killed in a shark attack off Queensland’s Gold Coast, marking the first fatal attack on the beaches of the resort town in more than 60 years.

Nick Slater, 46, was at Greenmount Beach in Coolangatta, a popular surf spot, when a shark mutated his leg Tuesday.

Nearby surfers found him floating in shallow water next to his board.

They took him to shore and gave him first aid, but he died on the spot.

Authorities closed an 11-mile (18-km) section of beaches Wednesday to search by helicopters and jet skis for the shark, which was reported to be a 3-m great white shark.

“Once we know that the shark is not in the vicinity or that we have tracked it down, the beach will reopen,” said City Mayor Tom Tate.

He said it was the first shark death on a Gold Coast beach since 1958, adding that authorities were investigating the event.

Slater, a local real estate agent, had been sailing past the Snapper Rocks point, which hosted a World Surf League competition in March.

A witness told the Courier Mail newspaper that Mr. Slater had been bitten on the upper leg and that “practically everything had been taken”.

A surfer who provided help, Jade Parker, said there was a large bite mark on Slater’s board.

“It was probably the same circumference as a basketball … and there was still a tooth lodged in the fiberglass that I had to extract,” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

The Gold Coast is one of Australia’s most famous tourist destinations, popular for its long white sand beaches, surf spots and inland waterways.

Its beaches have been protected by shark nets and drum lines (baited hooks suspended under water) since the 1960s, and shark attacks have been rare.

Officials said it was too early to say whether additional shark protection measures would be needed.

The Gold Coast suffered a fatal shark attack in 2003, but that incident occurred inland in extensive channels connected to the sea.

Slater’s death is the sixth fatal shark attack in Australia this year, with the majority occurring along the country’s east coast.

In June, two surfers were fatally attacked in separate incidents near northern New South Wales.