Great white shark reportedly bit 23-year-old surfer, severing leg
An Australian surfer vowed to get back on his board after a shark ripped off his leg in the waters off New South Wales last week.
Kai McKenzie, 23, was surfing near Port Macquarie on Tuesday when what he described as the "biggest shark I’ve ever seen" suddenly attacked him.
"A few days ago I went through a crazy shark attack (biggest shark I’ve ever seen) which was a very crazy scene and scared the living f--- out of me," McKenzie wrote in an Instagram post.
Authorities identified the shark as a nearly 10-foot-long great white, according to the BBC.
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Kai McKenzie, 23, was surfing off New South Wales in Australia when he was attacked by a shark, New South Wales police said. (NSW Police)
McKenzie saw the shark approach him in the water and was able to fight it off, but not before the ocean predator severed his right leg, according to a GoFundMe page created for the 23-year-old’s medical expenses that he linked to on Instagram.
"Clinging to life, [McKenzie] was able to catch a wave back to the beach," the page said.
Authorities said that a nearly 10-foot-long great white shark attacked Kai McKenzie, according to reports. (iStock)
Once on shore, the page said, a retired police officer used his dog’s leash to tie a tourniquet around McKenzie’s bloody leg. McKenzie was airlifted to John Hunter Hospital where he underwent surgery and is in a stable condition.
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The surfer’s leg washed up on shore a short time after the attack, and local locals put the appendage on ice in the hopes that surgeons could reattach it, the BBC reported. As of Monday, it was unclear whether reattachment surgery was attempted.
It was unclear whether surgeons tried to reattach Kai McKenzie's leg after the appendage washed ashore shortly after the attack. (Reinhard Dirscherl/ullstein bild via Getty Images, File)
Nearly a week after the attack, McKenzie posted an update on Instagram.
"Spot something missing?" he wrote in a post along with a photo of him in the hospital surrounded by loved ones.
McKenzie thanked all those who helped him through the shark attack and vowed that he would be catching waves again soon.
"I’ll be back in that water in no time! BIG F--- OFF TO THAT SHARK and BIG THANKS to Steve for saving my life," the 23-year-old wrote.
