A surfer was attacked by a shark at 8am in Western Australia at the Cobblestone wave near Gracetown, just a few kilometres from where the third stage of the world surfing circuit is taking place, several local media reported.

Because of this, after three round 2 heats of the Margaret River Pro had been held, the event was put on hold by the organisers, aware of the danger in the area. “Our priority is the safety of the surfers,” the WSL wrote in a statement posted on social media.

The event was initially halted for one hour and has now been extended to two.

According to the WSL, there is a protocol to follow that involves contacting local authorities.

Photographer Peter Jovic, who was at the scene, posted a photo on Instagram of the wave where the attack took place and wrote: “Shark attack at Cobblestone. Stay out.”

“A shark surfaced and basically pulled the surfer off his board,” Jovic told ABC Australia. “It was hard to see what was happening. I saw the surfer who was attacked pull away from his board and then paddle out onto a wave closer to shore. He managed to get out without a board and once on shore they started working to stop the bleeding.”

 

Gracetown shark attack. 14 years ago we were here when a bloke was killed by a shark hope it's not the same out come #gracetown #sharkattack #shark #westernaustralia #australia #justanotherdayinwa

A publication shared by Sam Robbo (@ohsnap_perth) the Apr 15, 2018 at 7:08 PDT