Reading view

Spearfisherman killed by suspected 15-foot shark after third fatal attack in less than a month

A fisherman was killed late Saturday morning after an attack by a suspected nearly 15-foot shark off the coast of Western Australia.

The unidentified 35-year-old was spearfishing near Michaelmas Island, a protected sand cay on the Great Barrier Reef not far from the city of Albany.

The island is around 240 miles south of Perth, the state’s capital.

His was the third fatal shark attack in the country in less than a month.

SHARK ATTACK DEATHS SURGE ABOVE DECADE AVERAGE IN 2025

The man was brought by boat to shore, but paramedics weren’t able to revive him.

On May 24, 39-year-old Michael Jensz was killed after suffering head injuries while spearfishing along the Great Barrier Reef off the country’s northeast coast. 

A bull shark is suspected in his death.

On May 16, 38-year-old Steve Mattabonni was killed by a white shark at Rottnest Island, a popular resort in Western Australia. He was also spearfishing.

In January, a 12-year-old also died a week after he was attacked by a shark in Sydney Harbor.

Australia usually averages around three shark deaths per year.

"We do see an increase in larger sharks this time of the year, particularly chasing the sardine and the salmon along the coast, which is quite normal," commercial fisherman Gregory Sharp told the Australian Broadcasting Company Saturday.

He added that sharks also tend to attack in areas "where there's a lot of seals, and the island area in King George Sound is renowned for seals."

Michaelmas Island is located in King George Sound.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Western Australia Premier Roger Cook said in a Facebook post Saturday that he was deeply saddened to hear of this morning's fatal shark attack in Albany. 

This is a tragedy and my thoughts are with the victim's family and friends, as well as the first responders."

  •  

Sherpa missing for a week on Everest found crawling toward base camp after his family begins funeral rites

A Sherpa guide whose family had already begun funeral rituals after he vanished on Mount Everest was found alive and crawling toward base camp nearly a week later, surviving alone on the world's highest peak without food, water or supplemental oxygen in what rescuers called "nothing short of a miracle."

Dawa Sherpa, 52, disappeared around May 29 while descending Everest after turning back short of the summit with a Polish climber he was guiding. The client made it safely to base camp, but Dawa had not, triggering fears that he had died on the mountain.

A cleanup crew from the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee found him Thursday morning crawling through the treacherous Khumbu Icefall, one of the most dangerous sections of Everest, just above base camp, Pemba Sherpa of 8K Expeditions told The Associated Press.

Rescuers carried him to safety, gave him food and water, and flew him by helicopter to a hospital in Kathmandu, where his wife and daughter were waiting.

LONE SURVIVOR RESCUED AFTER FATAL FALL KILLS THREE CLIMBERS ON MOUNT MCKINLEY

By that point, his family had already lost hope.

His teenage daughter, Mendo Lhamu Sherpa, told the outlet that relatives were in the middle of funeral rites when news of the rescue broke.

"When we first heard about it (the rescue), we could not be sure if that person was indeed our father," she said. "So to be certain we asked for photos to be sent and then only we were sure and very happy."

His wife, Damu Sherpa, added that the family learned he was alive through local news reports and phone calls from friends.

"We first heard that he was still alive on the local news and from a person we know who called with the news that ... he is being brought down," she said.

RESCUERS FREE CLIMBER TRAPPED BENEATH 16,000-POUND BOULDER ON OREGON'S MOUNT HOOD IN COMPLEX OPERATION

Dawa was still wearing his climbing jacket when rescuers found him. His family said he is being treated for frostbite and other complications but is conscious and able to speak.

"He recognized me … is good and speaks," his daughter told Reuters. "We are happy."

The Nepal Mount Everest hiking company called his survival extraordinary.

"Dawa survived alone for nearly a week without food, water, or supplemental oxygen navigating the treacherous Khumbu Icefall (even after the fixed ladders were removed for the season)," the company said in a social media post. "This is nothing short of a miracle."

It was unclear how Dawa became separated from his client during the descent or why there was a delay in launching a search team when he went missing last week. Helicopters were eventually dispatched but failed to locate him.

His rescue came at the end of a record-breaking Everest climbing season. More than 1,000 climbers and guides reached the summit this year after Nepal issued a record 494 permits.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Officials have said five climbers and guides died on Everest during the season, according to Reuters.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

  •  
❌