Surfers in New South Wales had a terrifying brush with a massive white shark and were fortunate to come away unharmed.
On the morning of August 18th, around 7:30 am, Brad Ross was surfing at Cabarita Beach when the incident occurred. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported the event.
During the encounter, a 16-foot shark bit his surfboard, sending him flying into the air. Miraculously, Ross suffered no injuries.
A local yoga teacher, Kim Falby, described the moment, saying, “The man was sitting on the board and the shark was literally biting the board behind his ass.” She remarked how the board seemed to explode, flying up while Ross screamed.
A video from the scene shows Ross scrambling away from the dangerous situation, visibly shaken but physically intact, dragging his damaged board with him. The board had been torn in half, and officials later confirmed that the bite marks were indeed from a great white shark.
Dave Rope from Surflife remarked on the incident, calling it a “very savage bite” and noted Ross was “very lucky,” even suggesting he should consider buying a lottery ticket.
The unsettling event prompted immediate action from Surflife, NSW police, and the Ministry of Primary Industries. Lifeguards quickly closed Cabarita Beach and nearby Norries Cove, set up warning signs, and deployed drones for area surveillance.
The Sharksmart app from the NSW government reported that a large 16-foot white shark had been captured and released from a smart drum line, meant to lure and catch large sharks, just hours after the attack, close to popular swimming spots.
As a precaution, two additional lines were also set up.
Kane Douglas, a friend of Ross paddling nearby, described how quickly the attack unfolded. “The board exploded, half went that way. The other half went that way. There were only whitewashings and shards everywhere,” he said.
While Ross was understandably shaken, he seemed more devastated about his board, according to surfboard maker Jason Jameson. “That board was more vitrified than a regular board… it was a strong, heavier board and crushed with one bite,” he noted, commenting on the incredible strength of the shark’s bite.
This incident occurred at the same beach where a 16-year-old boy was seriously injured by a shark just two months prior, raising fresh concerns about the presence of sharks during whale migration season.
According to the University of Florida’s international shark attack file, there were 47 unprovoked shark bite incidents reported globally, with 28 of those occurring on U.S. beaches in 2024. Just last week, sightings of a great white shark were reported several times along the coast of Scarborough, Maine.
