Wharton Beach: Police confirm search for missing surfer after shark attack is now a recovery effort

WA Police have confirmed the search for a missing surfer attacked by a shark on Monday is now a recovery effort, with all hope fading he could be found alive, after confronting drone footage emerged showing “large amounts of blood in the water”. The search for the man in his 30s who was attacked by a shark in front of shocked witnesses near Esperance resumed at first light on Tuesday. Commissioner Col Blanch on Tuesday said a small amount of drone footage recorded shortly after the attack confirmed a shark was in the area at the time. “Certainly in that immediate area, we can see large amounts of blood in the water,” he told 6PR. “So I think the family have been notified — I suspect it will be a recovery of a body, if we can find it.” Mr Blanch said the surfer was a 30-year-old man from Victoria. “It’s just one of those tragedies in our community that happen.” The surfer’s brother has told the ABC he is an avid surfer who lives in Melbourne. He had been travelling through the region with his girlfriend, and had planned to meet up with family in WA later this week. A search was launched off Wharton Beach in Cape Le Grand, 60km east of Esperance, after authorities were alerted to the incident, which happened in front of shocked witnesses just after noon on Monday. The surfer was reported to be in distress. A surfboard covered in bite marks was found floating a short time later, but there was no sign of the surfer. Two ambulances rushed to Wharton Beach after receiving a triple-0 call just before 12.10pm, arriving at the remote scene an hour later. Joscelin Boissieux, who was among several witnesses who watched on helplessly, told 9News the surfer’s partner was on the beach when he disappeared in chest-deep water around 50m from shore. “She was shocked,” he said. “There were screams. There were people saying ‘get out’ — it was a very panicked moment.” The search for the missing surfer, led by marine rescue personnel, police and SES volunteers, was suspended late on Monday but was resumed again at first light on Tuesday. A marine rescue boat was circling the crystal blue waters near where the attack occurred as the response moved to a recovery on Tuesday. Two fisheries officers were seen walking in nearby bushland, with one officer taking photos of the coastline. Police were entering roadblocks as tourists continued to take photos of the beach from afar. French bloggers Etienne Changarnier and Melanie Chevillié, both 31, stopped at Wharton Beach on Monday afternoon hours after the attack. The pair said one man, who is believed to have been present at the time, was sitting on the beach looking “devastated”. “We saw the (marine rescue) boat, police and the 4WD’s searching,” Mr Changarnier said. It wasn’t until Tuesday morning they found out it was more serious than anticipated. “This is shocking, to be honest, I don’t want to swim.” The pair are travelling around the world, posting their adventures to almost 100k Instagram followers. They have since driven back to Esperance after the partial closure of the coast. A woman, who visited the scene with her partner on Tuesday morning, broke down into tears when looking across the bay despite having no link to the man. “We have swam here multiple times,” she said. Tony Carmichael, who was visiting the beach for the first time, told the ABC several people were on the beach at the time of the attack. “Everyone was staring at the water in disbelief,” he said. “Numb. I just feel really numb. I was expecting to go in the water myself. “You think you might be safe but you just never know.” A shark sighting was reported 50m from the shore at Wharton Beach at 12.15pm, according to the SharkSmart website. Authorities declared the beach closed just after 2pm on Monday, with the closure to be reviewed after 24 hours. Little Wharton Beach was also closed a short time later. Swimmers were urged to “stay away from the area” and to report all shark sightings to Water Police. The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development confirmed it was “assisting WA Police with a serious shark bite incident”. Wharton beach is located in the Duke of Orleans Bay, which is renowned for its picturesque coastline, with locals calling it the “The Duke”. It is a popular location for surfers, swimmers and snorkelers. There have been several serious shark attacks in Esperance in the past two decades. Bunbury man Sean Pollard also lost his left arm and right hand when he was mauled at Kelp Beds in 2014. Popular Esperance local Gary Johnson, 57, died in a suspected attack by a great white shark while scuba diving in January 2020. Just 10 months later, local surfer Andrew Sharp, 40, was killed at Kelp Beds — the same place where 17-year-old Laeticia Brouwer was fatally attacked by a shark in 2017. In 2022, Nedlands 20-year-old Jacquelin Morley was sitting in an inflatable pool ring when she was bitten about 200m from shore at Wylie Bay. She was flown to Perth with serious injuries but survived. In 2006, Zac Golebiowski was 15 when a great white bit off his right leg above the knee while he was surfing at Wharton Beach. “Wharton Beach holds a very special place in my heart,” Mr Golebiowski told 9News on Monday. “It’s still my happy place. Today’s news has cut me to the core and left me in deep shock.” Esperance marine operations co-ordinator and former abalone diver Marc Payne — who has had numerous personal encounters with sharks — said the constant shark alarms and attacks have had a traumatic effect on the tight-knit local community. “We only have a small group of divers and surfers, so it really has a big impact on our ocean-going community,” he said. “We’re getting quite a lot of sightings and shark interactions nowadays, a lot more than we did in the past. It seems to be getting worse each year. “These ongoing sightings and obviously the attacks that go with it is quite traumatising on our community.”