A surfer at a popular Manly beach avoided entering the water minutes before a serious shark attack after being warned of the danger by his mates.
Max White surfs at North Steyne Beach on Sydney's Northern Beaches almost every day, and he had planned to do the same yesterday afternoon.
However, when he told his mates, they urged him not to go in the water.
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"I walked over and said to them, 'I'll go for a surf'. And they looked at me and started shaking their head," he told 2GB's Ben Fordham.
"They go, 'no, don't go out, you're going to get done by a shark'."
White said just 20 minutes later, a surfer was mauled by what is believed to be a bull shark, suffering serious leg injuries. He is now fighting for life in hospital.
It was the third shark attack in Sydney in just 26 hours, with a 12-year-old boy also fighting for life after being bitten in Vaucluse.
https://omny.fm/shows/ben-fordham-full-show/blood-in-the-water-2gb-reporter-involved-in-shark-attack-rescue/embed?size=Wide&style=CoverAnother boy had a chunk taken out of his surfboard in Dee Why.
Wet weather in Sydney has created optimal conditions for shark attacks, with waters murkier due to the recent downpour.
More than a dozen beaches across the city have now been closed as a result of the attacks.
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White said he was still on the beach when the attack happened, saying two French backpackers raised the call for help.
"[They] ran up to us and started screaming, 'in the water, there's a guy, he's bleeding out,'" he said.
"We looked out, and as he went over a wave, you could just see the pool of blood in the water.
"No matter how murky the water was, the wave was red."
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