australian fisherman missing after shark drags him into the ocean
a fisherman in australia is lost at sea after a shark d...
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shortfin mako shark
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a fisherman in australia is lost at sea after a shark dragged him into the ocean, police said.
paul barning, a member of the new south wales game fishing association, was pulled into the water after becoming tangled in fishing gear on sunday afternoon.
authorities received reports that the 58-year-old had fallen from his boat about 55 kilometres off the coast of port stephens, near newcastle.
supt. joe mcnulty, of the new south wales police force, said officers believed the vessel was reeling in a mako shark when the fisherman became entangled in the fishing line, news.com.au reported.
“after the entanglement, we believe the shark submerged, pulling the man into that water,” he added, noting that barning’s boat was 6.8 metres long while the shark was “quite large.”
mcnulty said the outcome may have been different if the experienced fisherman had been wearing a life jacket.
the superintendent added that the warm water temperatures and fast currents had brought more marine life to the area, making the search challenging.
the nsw game and fishing association paid tribute to barning, describing him as a “loved and revered” member of their community.
fisherman paul barning, who became entangled in fishing line and pulled into ocean by shark during fishing competition. (gofundme)
gofundme
“paul barning, current secretary, past president and life member of port hacking game fishing club was a highly experienced game fisherman,” nsw gfa president steve lamond wrote in a statement on monday.
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“he was tragically lost at sea in the most unlikely of circumstances while fishing on his boat ‘dark horse’ off port stephens on sunday.”
he continued: “our thoughts and prayers are with his wife leonie, his son sam and daughters eleanor and brigette in this trying time. we also have the crew and their families in our thoughts and prayers.”
passengers on a nearby recreational fishing vessel said they saw someone being dragged into the water by a shark, abc.net reported.
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however, lamond insisted that “there was definitely no shark attack” but rather, “an absolute freak tragedy that occurred during the attempt to capture a fish.”
a gofundme created by lamond has received more than $119,600 — (aud)$131,700 — in donations as of press time.
“as most of you are aware paul was lost at sea on sunday during the interclub game fishing tournament,” the page reads.
“we are raising funds to assist the family through this tragic time so the can focus on processing their grief. anything you could give to assist will be greatly appreciated.”
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