According to CNN, pro surfer Brett Connellan was hospitalized Wednesday evening [April 30] after he was attacked by a shark off the Australian eastern coast.
The 22-year-old Connellan was surfing on Bombo Beach in Kiama, about 75 miles south of Sydney, when the shark approached. He lost a large portion of his left thigh and his hand was also mauled while trying to fight off the shark.
Witnesses report there were over a dozen surfers at the beach that evening, but Connellan was about 165 feet away from the group when the attack occurred.
Friend Joel Trist was in the water nearby and describes the moment he realized his friend was in trouble. “The first thing I saw was Brett getting thrashed about in the water,” Trist said. He then heard a “terrible scream.”
