Sydney: According to authorities, a woman swimmer was mauled by a shark in Sydney Harbour for the first time in fifteen years on Tuesday. She was taken to the hospital with a “serious” leg injury.
Less than two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Sydney Opera House, the woman was swimming when the predator attacked her on Monday night, according to police.
According to a statement from New South Wales police, the woman had a “serious injury to her right leg”.
It was the first shark attack in Sydney Harbour since a bull shark bit an Australian naval diver in Woolloomooloo Bay in February 2009, and the diver survived.
The Sydney Morning Herald revealed the victim’s identity as 29-year-old Lauren O’Neill from Elizabeth Bay, and neighbors flocked to help.
“I sat down on the couch after returning from work. A nearby homeowner named Michael Porter told reporters, “I heard a soft yell for help just outside the window.”
He observed the woman outside, attempting to climb a ladder to escape the waves of the harbor.
“Behind her was her leg, which was limp and all completely open and full of dark red blood behind her,” said Porter.
“She had obviously been mauled extremely badly by whatever shark it was that got her,” he stated.
“We have always worried and known about sharks in the harbour,” he stated. “It’s only now that it feels very real.”
First aid was administered by a local veterinarian.
“High-risk period”
The woman was receiving critical treatment at St. Vincent’s in a stable state.
It was anticipated that she would have surgery during the day.
According to shark expert Amy Smoothey, “a bull shark was likely responsible” for the shark bite, according to analysis of the bite and photos provided by the authorities.
She told national network ABC that dawn and dusk are “potentially a high-risk time to be swimming” since sharks are “more actively feeding” in low light.
Since 2009, researchers have tagged 87 huge bull sharks in Sydney Harbor, according to Smoothey, a department of primary industries employee in New South Wales.
According to tagging data, the peak bull shark population in the harbor occurred during the Australian summer, specifically in January and February, the speaker stated.
