Shark bites 17-year-old’s legs before his best friend rescues him off Australia coast
A teenager was rescued by his best friend after a shark attacked him off the coast of Australia, the victim told local media outlets.
Luke Pascoe, 17, and his friend, Conner Shirley, went spearfishing near Mistaken Island in southwestern Australia on Monday, Aug. 15, ABC reported.
About 30 feet underwater, Pascoe shot a fish, attracting a nearby shark, he told ABC.
Pascoe told 9 News that the 16-foot great white shark, “took one turn, had a look at me. Took another turn, and on that last turn, it just came straight for me and bit me on the legs.”
Shirley saw the whole incident, “I just see this splash and the tail and his arms go flying, and I, I thought he was dead,” he told 9 News.
But Pascoe managed to surface and, with Shirley’s help, get out of the water, 9 News reported.
Once on shore, Shirley used a dive belt as a makeshift tourniquet on Pascoe’s leg to stem the bleeding, then carried his friend over a mile along the rocks to reach their car, ABC reported.
He drove 30 minutes to a nearby hospital and carried his friend inside, 9 News reported.
Pascoe suffered multiple wounds on his legs, photos from ABC showed.
As of Tuesday, he was in stable condition, The Guardian reported.
He’s grateful to be alive because of his friend’s action, telling 9 News that, “if not for him, I would not be here right now. I owe my life to him.”
The incident is under investigation, according to a news release on Aug. 16 from the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.
The department said they are “installing warning signs” on Goode Beech, near where the incident took place, and warned others in the area to be cautious, the release said.
So far in 2022, there have been nine shark attacks in Australia, according to data recorded by The Australian Shark-Incident Database and published by The Guardian.
Mistaken Island is off the coast of Albany in western Australia, about 255 miles southeast of Perth.
This story was originally published August 16, 2022 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Shark bites 17-year-old’s legs before his best friend rescues him off Australia coast."
