30 YEARS OF SURFING AND A TERRIFYING STRIKE: Dave Seymour narrowly escapes d3:ath after a shark slams into him without warning—the truth behind the life-saving board leaves everyone stunned!
A Bundaberg surfer says a shark slammed into his hydrofoil board without warning, launching him into the water in a frightening encounter he believes was a case of mistaken identity.
Dave Seymour made it back to shore unharmed, but the borrowed carbon board was left gouged with deep tooth marks after the strike.
Speaking on Sunrise, he said recent trawler activity near the area where he was surfing off Moore Park Beach may have brought sharks closer to the beach.
“The thing blindsided me,” Mr Seymour said.
“I went flying and sort of treading water for a bit trying to process what happened, and figured I should probably get on the board, hit the trigger and get back on the beach and just give it some thought and reassess.”
Dave Seymour escaped unhurt after a shark bit into his hydrofoil board off Moore Park Beach. Picture: Sunrise/ 7News
He believes the board itself may have prevented a much worse outcome, explaining the thicker build of a hydrofoil board likely gave him more protection than a standard board would have.
“These boards they’re somewhere in the vicinity of 4 inches to 6 inches (10cm to 15cm) thick, and I think if I was on a thinner board it might have been a closer call,” he said.
After landing in the water, Mr Seymour said staying calm became his first priority.
“The moment you panic, I think that’s going to attract a bit more attention,” he said.
He described the incident as an “isolated and pretty rare attack” and said he believed the shark had mistaken him for prey.
“I think I’m pretty lucky,” he said.
Tooth marks were left in the borrowed carbon board after the shark struck. Picture: Sunrise/ 7News
The board drifted several metres away after the hit, forcing Mr Seymour to swim back to it before triggering the foil and heading for shore. Despite the violence of the encounter, he escaped without injury.
While shark attacks and fatalities have made headlines around Australia this year, Mr Seymour said he had not seen any major change in shark activity off Bundaberg.
“I don’t see much shark activity really. I’ve been surfing for upwards of 30 years and I’ve never had an encounter like this,” he said.
“I do hear about increased shark numbers … and I think it’s an important topic of conversation. It’s really good that people are starting to converse about this.”
He said he hopes the incident sharpens focus on the need for shark bite kits in regional areas.
SOURCE: NEWS.COM.AU
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/blindsided-me-bundaberg-surfer-describes-terrifying-shark-strike-off-moore-park-beach/news-story/aa971ec9b09b3f9be6bcc993051c3a22
