A surfer who went lacking off the coast of South Australia is believed to have died in a shark assault, authorities have mentioned.
Lance Appleby, 28, was within the sea at common browsing web site Granites seashore, close to the coastal city of Streaky Bay, on Thursday night when witnesses reported seeing him being attacked.
One witness went into the ocean on a jet ski to retrieve the surfboard Mr Appleby was utilizing on the time, however there was no signal of him, senior constable Rebecca Stokes informed the Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC).
“There was simply no signal of this younger man, there’s simply been no signal of him,” she informed ABC. “From witnesses’ descriptions, we’re fairly assured that sadly he is been killed by this shark.”
South Australia Police mentioned an air, land and water search would proceed on 3 January to attempt to find Mr Appleby’s physique.
Granites seashore in South Australia is a well-liked spot for surfers. Pic: iStock
Mr Appleby, from Port Lincoln, was an area within the Streaky Bay group, Sky Information Australia reported.
Assistant police commissioner John De Candia informed reporters the assault was “completely tragic” and has had a large impression on “numerous folks”.
One other man was killed by a white shark on the identical seashore in 2023. Ms Stokes mentioned the world is thought to be frequented by sharks, and the seashore stays closed to the general public.
Dr Brianna Le Busque, a shark researcher from the College of South Australia, informed Sky Information Australia Mr Appleby was probably attacked by an ideal white shark because the species is extra lively in summer time.
Learn extra from Sky Information:
Oldest living Olympic medallist dies
Investigators fail to detain impeached South Korean president
“There’s extra folks within the ocean in summer time, so it’s extra probably that there are unlucky bites that happen in the course of the summer time months,” Ms Le Busque mentioned.
The state of South Australia has registered extra shark assaults prior to now two years than traditional.
There have been 5 assaults off the state’s coast in 2023, three of them deadly and one on the similar seashore as Thursday’s incident. In 2024 there was one non-fatal shark chew off South Australia’s coast.
