Fatal maulings and close calls that left survivors with a terrifying tale
A surge in shark sightings off our beaches this summer is a grim reminder that danger is always lurking.
South East
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It’s been an unusually busy summer for shark sightings in Victorian waterways.
The fearsome fins have been regularly spotted slicing through waters off a string of popular Mornington Peninsula often packed with families.
Divers have also reported seeing the more dangerous bull sharks on the other side of Port Phillip Bay at Point Lonsdale.
Fortunately it’s been 66 years since a fatal shark attack in Victoria when John Wishart was taken at Portsea.
But there are some terrifying tales of close calls over the years including a lucky escape by two teens at Ocean Grove in December 2021.
We’ve listed the most frightening encounters below.
Peter Rooney, Emerald Hill, 1876
There were a handful of deaths as the result of shark attacks in the first 50 years of Melbourne’s colonial history but none more shocking than that of Peter Rooney. The apprentice stonemason was swimming at Emerald Hill Jetty in the early hours of February 6, 1876 when he began to scream to his friends for help. James Pritchard bravely rode his horse into the water to retrieve Rooney, and somehow plucked him from the jaws of the shark. But the 18-year-old had suffered terrible lower body injuries, and died on the beach minutes later.
Norman Clark, Middle Brighton 1930
A large crowd had gathered on the Middle Brighton pier to watch a dinghy race on a warm Saturday in February 1930, which included 19-year-old winch operator Norman Clark, his girlfriend and younger brother Russell. The trio wandered down to the end of the pier where Clark decided to take a dip, the other two not being keen on the cold water. Just seconds later, Clark resurfaced with his body straddling the jaws of a massive 5m Great White. The teen flailed punches into the beast’s enormous head but, much to the horror of the dozens who watched the attack, Clark was dragged below and never seen again.
Charles Swann, Mordialloc, 1936
The last of the seven verified shark fatalities in Port Phillip Bay occurred in the waters off Mordialloc some time on November 30, 1936. World War I veteran Charles Swann was a keen fisherman despite the wounds he suffered in battle and set-off in a small dinghy for a spot of snapper fishing early that day. He had failed to return by midafternoon but the oars and part of the dinghy washed up on the beach. Friends located the damaged boat the next day, which included a large hole with shark teeth embedded on either side. A large Grey Nurse was also sighted swimming nearby.
John Wishart, Portsea, 1956
The tragic death of John Wishart was front-page news in what was the most recent verified shark attack death in Victorian waters. The 26-year-old plumber from Sorrento was swimming with fellow lifesavers just after the Sorrento-Portsea club championships when, according to The Argus, he was attacked by a 4m shark. The five men alongside Wishart barely registered what had happened but those on the beach, including his sister, young wife and her mother, saw the shark leap from the water during the attack. Despite a thorough search, Wishart’s body was never found.
Harold Holt, Portsea, 1967
The story of Australia’s 17th Prime Minister and his shocking demise is well told. Not quite two years since being sworn-in, Holt was weekending at his Portsea holiday home. Just before lunchtime on December 17, Holt and friend Alan Stewart entered the water at Cheviot Beach, just a few kilometres along the coast from the site of John Wishart’s attack 11 years earlier. Stewart lost sight of his friend, and eyewitnesses suggested Holt had been caught in a rip. Enter numerous conspiracy theories – from suicide and faking his own death to Chinese submarines and CIA assassins. Drowning or shark attack are more plausible explanations.
Rob McFarlane, Queenscliff, 2016
For those of you who think staying out of the water will keep you out of a shark’s mouth, meet fisherman Rob McFarlane. Then aged 73, the New Gisborne resident setout from Queenscliff on a November morning in 2016 in search of snapper. He caught what he thought was a nice-sized gummy shark, but it turned out to be a broadnose sevengill shark with very healthy teeth. The wildly-thrashing fish fastened onto Mr McFarlane’s arm, leaving serious injuries to his wrist and hand. With the shark still aboard, he managed to steer his boat 2km back to port where paramedics waited.
Marcel Brundler, Lorne, 2017
A late-winter surf at Cathedral Rocks near Lorne earned Marcel Brundler a tale that he’ll dine out on for the rest of his days. The Swiss-born Surfcoast tradie was dragged under the water by what was thought to be a 4m white pointer. Brundler somehow became sandwiched in the behemoth’s jaws along with his surfboard in an encounter he estimated lasted up to a minute. A fluke wave dislodged the surfer, and he was amazed to discover that he’d been left with a grazed hip, some bruising along with a wetsuit and surfboard scarred with some nasty teeth marks.
Jack Shaw and Tiarna Athanasiou, Ocean Grove, 2021
Shark attacks are not consigned to history as shown by this frightening incident at Ocean Grove in December 2021. Jack Shaw and Tiarna Athanasiou were taking an early-evening dip in barely two metres of water when a bronze whaler struck. The 15-year-olds were both injured – Shaw on the hip and Athanasiou on the hand and leg – and were forced to beat the shark away to avoid an even worse outcome. The actions of a surfer who placed a tourniquet on Athanasiou’s gaping leg wound were credited with helping save the limb. The area is known as a breeding ground for bronze whalers but they’re rarely involved in such incidents.
HMAS J4 Submarine dive site, 2022
Just weeks ago, a shark was reported to have “bumped a diver” who was among a group exploring the HMAS J4 Submarine off Point Lonsdale. Dorsal, a shark sighting service, reported the shark “swam straight at three divers before leaving without incident.” The incident sparked fears that bull sharks had made their way south from the tropical waters they usually call home. Dorsal co-founder Sarah Beardmore said bull sharks and bronze whalers are sometimes confused for each other. “I don’t think we can rule anything out in 2022, but there’s a chance these bull shark sightings are bronze whalers.”