Another bloody shark attack in Ballina

A guy bodyboarding at north wall was attacked by a shark,not sure how he is ,only said he was a 32 yr old local.hope goes to his family

Further to the earlier report.

Surf lifesavers on jetskis are combing the waters in the northern NSW to find the shark that mauled a bodyboarder, leaving him fighting for his life.

The search comes as media organisations tweeted photos of what appears to be a large shark reportedly spotted near the scene of the attack.

A 32-year-old local man is critically injured in Gold Coast Hospital after being pulled from the water at Lighthouse Beach in Ballina on Thursday morning, suffering
serious injuries to his lower legs.

He was with two mates at the beach at around 10am when he was bitten. Emergency services attended to him on the scene and he was airlifted to hospital in a
critical condition.

The owner of Lighthouse Beach Cafe said locals banded together to help the man. "I looked down the beach, saw them working on a bloke, it was all hell ... there's
lots of people down here," she told AAP.

All beaches within Ballina Shire will be closed for the next 24 hours. Boats, jetskis and helicopters are searching for the shark.

The attack comes the day before Friday's Oz Grom Surfing Competition, where 270 young competitors from the region are set to compete.

Ballina Mayor David Wright said the council will meet later on Thursday with Surf Lifesaving NSW and police about whether the beaches will have to remain closed and what impact that will have on the surf carnival.

"We're not sure but we're going to try and have it... because it's the biggest junior carnival in Australia," he told AAP. "But it's too soon to make a call."

Sitting here watching the cops trying to get 5 short boarders of the water at 5:15pm dusk this happened at sharpes beach. What!3 klms away from north wall,how unbelievably selfish is that. Bloody great sign in the car park saying " beach closed shark attack" couldn't miss it it's right where you drive in.the poor cops finally gave up and drove off in disgust,these guys,if anything happened would expect others to risk their lives saving them.

Just following up on this, some positive news just through the wires.

The bodyboarder who suffered serious injuries after being attacked by a shark on the NSW north coast has woken up in hospital. Mathew Lee was bitten while in the water at Ballina on July 2. The 32-year-old was rushed to Gold Coast University Hospital in a critical condition but has since regained consciousness.

"Mat is awake and he's in good spirits," a post to the Mathew Lee support page on Facebook states. "He wanted to let everyone know how grateful he is for the many well wishes and love sent to him. The road to recovery is going to be a long one and he has asked for all to keep sending love and positive thoughts."

A photograph posted on the page shows Mr Lee and his girlfriend lying in a hospital bed smiling.

Another follow up on this thread. The following came through on the newswires.

After being mauled by a four-metre great white shark two months ago, NSW bodyboarder Mat Lee could be forgiven for thinking about himself. But he is not that type of guy.
Since the attack near Ballina on the NSW north coast on July 2, the 32-year-old has been recovering from serious leg injuries.
Leaving his wheelchair at home and using crutches, the softly-spoken social worker was welcomed home last Saturday by about 500 supporters at a fundraiser at Ballina's Shaws Bay Hotel.
Almost $20,000 was raised for his rehabilitation, but Mr Lee then donated $5187.50 of it to the Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter, which airlifted him to hospital after the shark attack.
The helicopter service, along with two friends who pulled Mr Lee to the beach and the rapid response of off-duty marine rescue officers were all credited with saving his life that morning.
One of his friends, Simon Bruncke, said he wasn't surprised at the turn out on Saturday. "It's a small town, and he's such a nice guy; he is like the fabric of the community," he told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
Mr Lee thanked his parents and his partner Suzy, who's been by his side since the attack.
"I couldn't have done it without you babe, thank you," he said at the fundraiser.
Mr Lee's attack is one of 14 shark attacks recorded in NSW this year. A panel of experts plan on meeting later this month to discuss measures to prevent attacks in NSW waters.

It's the ocean user's that survive that face the scariest conundrum if they still have all their limbs. I can only marvel at their bravery at going back in the water if they choose to do so. BTW everyone of the animals in the graphic barring Jellyfish are culled, slaghtered and eaten .....yes chocolate coated ants. Horse meat is the meat of choice in many European countries as is Venison, Hippos are loved everywhere in Africa for there ability to feed a village. I don't support the culling of sharks because it hasn't affected me. I bet that most (not all) of the people that don't support culling haven't lost a friend or a loved one. Ask me again if one of my kids gets bitten.(They can gladly have my ex wife ...not really...no not really .)