Geraldton Shark Attack Rescuer Vows to Return to the Water

A local man who responded to a shocking shark attack on Western Australia's Midwest coast says he is struggling to forget the sight of the blood.

Shannan Dunn, a resident who has surfed at Glenfield Beach in Geraldton for more than 20 years, was the first to respond to the emergency on Monday morning. He had taken a photo of the swell with another surfer, Mel Ismail, in the distance before running back to his car to put on his wetsuit.

The Shark Attack

Moments later, Mr Ismail was bitten by a shark. "His board was about 5 metres away, and he had his arm up," Mr Dunn said. "Then it only took a couple of seconds and I saw the blood all around him."

Mr Dunn raced into the water and swam out in Mr Ismail's direction. "I don't think I really hesitated; I just wanted to get to him as quick as I could," he said.

Upon reaching Mr Ismail, he recalled the surfer saying, "Shark — it's got my leg", and decided not to look at the injury. DNA from the bitten board is being used to identify the shark species involved.

The Rescue Efforts

Mr Dunn said he "clumsily" paddled Mr Ismail to the beach, where a bystander made a makeshift tourniquet from a leg rope while another called for emergency services.

"He had lost his foot from just above his ankle," Mr Dunn said. "He … looked like he could fade out at any moment. We didn't know how much blood he had lost."

Mr Dunn brought his four-wheel drive onto the beach and, along with some teenagers and other bystanders, helped get Mr Ismail into the vehicle to meet the paramedics.

"We just gunned it down the beach," he said.

The 56-year-old firefighter was rushed to the Geraldton Health Campus with serious injuries, where he remains in a stable condition.

Recovery and Tribute

A spokesperson for the local health service praised the first aid administered by those at the scene, calling it "exceptional" and saying it helped paramedics rapidly transfer Mr Ismail to hospital.

Mr Dunn returned to the scene of the frantic rescue on Thursday, three days on from the attack. Despite the trauma, he plans to get back in the water sooner rather than later.

"I've given myself a week … if the conditions are right and there are enough people in the water, I'll probably give it a crack," he said. "I don't think I'll be able to keep away from it for too long."

Glenfield Beach reopened on Wednesday morning.

Mr Dunn said Mr Ismail's family told him he was recovering well in hospital. "It's looking very promising, I'd say, at this stage," Mr Dunn said.

Mr Dunn hoped he could reunite with Mr Ismail soon. "Hopefully I don't bring back any bad memories from that day," Mr Dunn said. "I'm hoping that he will be stoked to see us, as I'm just as stoked to see him, to be honest. I literally can't wait for that day, but it's only when he's ready."