A 39-year-old man died after a shark attack off the coast of Queensland in north-eastern Australia on Sunday, becoming the second person killed in Australian coastal waters in as many weeks. Emergency services were called to a boat ramp on the Cassowary Coast just before noon local time after reports that a swimmer had been attacked at a nearby shoal.
Queensland Police said the man was retrieved from the water but died from his injuries. The force did not release his name or give details of the wounds, saying only that the death was being treated as sudden and non-suspicious. It added that a report will be prepared for the coroner.
The fatal attack follows a run of recent incidents that has put shark encounters back in focus along Australia’s coastline. Last Saturday, a 38-year-old man was killed while spearfishing near Perth in Western Australia after being bitten on the lower legs and unable to be revived. On Saturday, Steven Mattaboni, 38, died after a shark attack while spearfishing at Rottnest Island, in an incident linked to Horseshoe Reef north-west of the island. Last Sunday, Nico Antic was attacked while swimming in Sydney Harbour.
Australia records more shark encounters than many other countries, but most do not end in death. The Australian Shark-Incident Database counted four encounters across the country in January, and only one was fatal. Popular swimming and surfing spots around Australia often have measures in place to reduce the risk, but those precautions do not eliminate it.
The Queensland case is now in the hands of the coroner, and police said further comment would be inappropriate while that process is under way. For the family of the man who died on the Cassowary Coast, the official response has already settled the key question: this was a sudden and non-suspicious death, and one more fatal shark attack in a country that has seen two in as many weeks.
