A local surf skier has described his recent run in with a possible great white shark as a near death experience.
Trent Martin was paddling around 500m offshore at MacMasters Beach on Saturday, June 13, when the 3m shark bumped into his ski.
Martin said he initially thought the shadow beside him was a dolphin, but quickly realised it was a shark when the animal swam under the ski before it emerged on his right and bit the hull.
Concerned for his safety and the condition of his vessel, Martin made a tense journey back to shore, one he won’t soon forget.
“I just paddled in as fast as I could.
“It was very scary.
“I didn’t know if it was chasing me or not.
“It could have been a very different story if I’d fallen in,” Martin said.
Fisheries NSW have since examined the bitemarks in Martin’s surf ski and concluded it was most likely a great white.
The encounter follows a report in April from a Wamberal surfer, Hayden Edwards that a shark bit his hand.
“I paddled out, but once I was out the back, the perfect day became a nightmare, as within a split second, a 6ft shark grabbed my hand, severing three tendons,” Edwards said on social media.
Source:
Video, Jun 13
Trent Martin
Reporter: Dilon Luke