Dozens of sharks in feeding frenzy at Gold Coast’s Snapper Rocks, stunning footage shows
Stunning footage from one of Australia’s most popular surf breaks shows a deserted line-up and dozens of predators closing in on the shore in startling scenes.
Stunning footage has emerged from the Gold Coast’s iconic surf spot, Snapper Rocks, showing dozens of sharks in a feeding frenzy.
The chaos was captured in numerous posts on social media on Tuesday.
Rain, hail, or shine, it’s not unusual to see hundreds of surfers in the water at Snapper on any given day, but the footage shows a deserted line-up.
That, however, may have also been due to what looked like garbage surf conditions and a number of hungry predators in the shallows.
One poster, Daisy Thompson, wrote “She’s sharky”.
Another wrote, “on a serious note this is so scary! And definitely do not go swimming or surfing!”
It appears the sharks, ranging from 1-2.5 metres, were close to shore because they were chasing a bait ball.
Bait balls are dense schools of small fish that form a spherical defence formation.
They can attract predators like sharks, and in this case a feeding frenzy can ensue.
They are actually pretty common along much of Australia’s east coast, particularly in Queensland and New South Wales waters, and often lead to beach closures because they attract sharks.
Greenmount beach, just north of Snapper Rocks, was the scene of the Gold Coast’s last fatal shark attack when real estate agent Nick Slater was fatally mauled there in 2020.
Mr Slater was killed in a suspected great white shark attack on one of Queensland’s most picturesque beaches, with hero surfers racing into the water to retrieve his body.
He was pulled ashore with severe leg injuries and despite the best efforts of paramedics could not be saved.
Earlier this month a group of boys pulled a teenager from the water after a life-threatening shark attack in Queensland’s Far North.
The 14-year-old was attacked after entering the water off Cook Esplanade, on Thursday Island, about 6.23pm on Saturday, October 11.
According to Queensland Police, he suffered “significant abdominal injuries” and was transported to Thursday Island Hospital before later being flown to Townsville.
According to the Torres Shire Council, which covers the northernmost part of Cape York Peninsula and islands of Torres Strait including Thursday Island, the boy was fishing with friends when the attack occurred.
