Man loses leg in Australia shark attack

PERTH, Australia - A surfer was critical Wednesday after a shark ripped off his leg in an attack in Australia's west with witnesses recounting how "all hell broke loose" as his board was snapped in half.

The attack happened at Falcon Beach, a suburb south of Perth, late Tuesday not long after Surf Life Saving WA, a volunteer non-profit organization, tweeted that a shark, believed to be a great white, had been sighted in the area.

The West Australian newspaper reported that Ben Gerring, 29, was with a group of other surfers when he was hit by the shark, which it said severed his right leg above the knee.

Fellow surfers dragged the heavily-bleeding man to shore as he lost consciousness.

"I turned and looked back and I actually saw thrashing around him and I heard him yelling for help," friend Sheldon Spencer told the newspaper.

"His leg was gone ... one of the guys started CPR straight away. We did everything we could."

He was transferred to Royal Perth Hospital by helicopter where he was said to be in critical condition.

Mandurah Boardriders Club president Brian Williams said he had just paddled further out into the ocean to catch a bigger wave when "all hell broke loose".

"He was right out the back looking to get a big wave, one of the set waves that had been coming through during the day," Williams told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"He'd sort of paddled out the back, sort of past the pack slightly. And next thing all hell broke loose and they were trying to bring him in.

"His board was broken in half, they found the tail part of his board."

He added that Gerring's mother was at the scene.

Western Australia's department of fisheries said shark traps would be set on Wednesday to try and capture the animal, saying "a serious threat to public safety exists".

"Given the nature of the injuries and the location of the incident, it is likely that a white shark, of three metres (9ft 10ins) or more in size, is responsible," it said.

Experts say attacks are increasing as water sports become more popular and bait fish move closer to shore, but fatalities remain rare.

There have been a spate of attacks, mostly off Australia's east coast last year, including the death of a Japanese surfer.

More recently, a surfer had most of his thigh bitten off by a shark in an attack south of Sydney in March.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Raging bushfire devastates Australian town

PERTH, Australia - A "catastrophic" bushfire has burnt through a historic town in Western Australia, razing 95 homes and leaving three people unaccounted for, officials said Friday.

The out-of-control blaze 110 kilometers (68 miles) south of Perth more than doubled in size in 24 hours and has now burned through 53,000 hectares (130,000 acres), with a third of the town of Yarloop destroyed.

"I believe we've had what I would suggest [are] catastrophic losses within Yarloop," the state's Fire and Emergency Services commissioner Wayne Gregson told reporters.

"It appears that we've lost around 95 houses, a number of structures within the town site including some of the historical buildings."

Gregson said three or four people had minor injuries as a result of the blaze, which was fanned by strong winds, but added: "Sadly we have three people unaccounted for from Yarloop."

Yarloop has a population of 500-600 with an estimated 250 homes.

Aerial footage showed houses reduced to just their brick fireplaces, leaving only blackened ground and the burnt-out shells of vehicles.

Yarloop resident Ron Sackville told 6PR radio there was "very little" left.

"I look around 360 degrees and everything is burnt to a cinder. The fire was horrendous," he said.

Another resident described the overnight emergency -- initially triggered by a lightning strike -- as like the town was being hit by "fireballs".

"It was crazy. One fireball after another. The wind... it was unbelievable," Alex Jovanovich told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"It's devastating," he said of the damage.

"There's bugger all left. The hall is gone. I believe the pub's gone. The workshops are gone. The old hospital is gone. I think the church is gone."

Hundreds of firefighters were battling the blaze, which has prompted evacuations and an emergency warning for nearby towns and surrounding areas.

"You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive. There is a threat to lives and homes," an official warning said.

Bushfires are a common feature of Australia's summer, with four people dying in November in Esperance in Western Australia's far south, and another two perishing in South Australia.

"The fire is still uncontrolled, it is still very, very unpredictable," Gregson said.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com