Kai McKenzie’s board, shortly after a shark attack severed his leg. Photo: NSW Police
The severed leg of New South Wales surfer Kai McKenzie washed up on shore shortly after he was attacked by a shark Tuesday morning. After the 23-year-old was stabilized, a race against time began to see if the limb could be reattached.
The shark encounter occurred around 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, when McKenzie was surfing at North Shore Beach near Port Macquarie. “The man saw the shark approach him, he was able to fight it off, he was pretty courageous and able to turn around and catch a wave to shore,” NSW Ambulance Service acting duty operations officer Kirran Mowbray told ABC News. Once Kai made it back to land, a passing retired police officer came to his aid, using a dog leash as a tourniquet to stem the bleeding until emergency services arrived.
Shortly afterwards, McKenzie’s severed leg washed up on shore and locals were able to put it on ice, as NSW police confirmed to The Guardian. McKenzie and his leg were then taken to the Port Macquarie base Hospital, before being flown to Newcastle’s John Hunter Hospital. Upon arrival, doctors were assessing whether the leg could be reattached, according to the BBC, but it is unclear as of yet whether they succeeded. Emergency services told BBC Kai was in “serious but stable condition.”
A GoFundMe has been started for Kai’s medical expenses and recovery. As of this writing, over $117,000 AUD has been raised.
