Teen airlifted to hospital after being 'seriously injured' in shark attack at popular beach
A teenage boy has been left with “serious” arm injuries after being mauled by a shark at a popular beach.
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Emergency services were called to the scene at Cabarita Beach on the coast of New South Wales, Australia, at around 4pm local time on Sunday.
The teenager, who has not been named, was rushed to hospital after being badly bitten on his arm by the shark.
He was airlifted from the scene to Gold Coast University by the Westpac Rescue Helicopter and remains in a serious but stable condition.
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It comes after “selfie-seeking” tourists were blamed for an uptick in shark attacks.
Scientists are blaming a growing desire to photograph and "stroke" the beasts, fuelled by online influencers, on the sudden rise in shark-related “attacks”.
They claim the popularity of social media is encouraging tourists to pursue the perfect shot despite the risks.
It comes as scientists emphasised that unprovoked aggression towards humans remains an extremely uncommon occurrence.
"I don't encourage, as many influencers do on social networks, to cling to a shark's dorsal fin or stroke it, under the pretext of proving that they are harmless and supposedly working for their conservation," Professor Eric Clua, of Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL) University in France, has said.
The professor, who led research into the surge in shark attacks, has highlighted a notable lack of fear towards the predator - likening the scenario to a human approaching a stranger's dog without any regard for their safety.
“People know the difference between a [Yorkshire terrier] and a pit bull, whereas they don’t know the difference between a blacktip reef shark and a bull shark, which are their marine equivalents,” he said.
“There’s an incredibly negative perception bias towards sharks … they are responsible for fewer than ten human deaths a year worldwide, whereas dogs are responsible for more than 10,000 deaths and are perceived positively by the public.”