SHARK VICTIMS

Taranaki Daily News, 12 January 1935, Page 8

SHARK VICTIMS

SYDNEY YOUNG MAN KILLED. GIRL DREADFULLY INJURED. Two tragic shark attacks occurred in George’s River, Botany Bay, near Sydney, within fbur hours on December 31. Richard George Soden, aged 19, a labourer, of Westridge, Canberra, was attacked and frightfully mauled near the Milperra Bridge, at Moorebank. He was dragged from the water and died in the arms of his rescuer. Beryl Gladys Morrin, aged 13, of Birdwood Road, Upper Bankstown, was swimming in the river at Kentucky later, three miles from the scene of the first tragedy, when a shark attacked her. She received terrible injuries. The flesh of the right leg of the man was tom completely away from the knee to the thigh, baring' the bone. Despite the horrible injury ,he screamed a warning to his 'companions, and swam more than 15 yards before assistance reached him. The girl’s right arm was torn off, and her left arm was amputated below the elbow. ■ ■ - Both attacks took place at popular swimming '.resorts, and both more than 20 miles from the mouth of the river. This' year sharks have attacked seven people at different bathing resorts within the State. Four ended fatally. Soden arrived in Sydney recently to spend his holidays with his fosterparents, to whom he was deeply attached, at Moorebank. Accompanied by his foster-brother, Peter Lawrence, 20, and Ernest Edwards, 20,' Soden went down to the George’s River, which is only about'half a mile from , his home, early in the day for a swim. Numerous picnic parties were spending the day at the pool near the Milperra Bridge, and throughout the day scores of people were either swimming or fishing from the banks. About 4.30 o’clock in the afternoon the boys decided to race across the river, which is only about 50 yards wide at that point., Several other people had just crossed the stream, and were about to swim back again at the time, but they stayed on the bank to watch the race. Soden quickly took the lead. He was about 20 yards from the winning post on the opposite bank when there was a swirl of water. Simultaneously with his Agonised scream of “shark,” a fisherman shouted a warning. The boy was dragged down. The huge tail of the shark thrashed the water and then the victim reappeared. He swam frantically for the shore, and a trail of blood followed him. Two fishermen leaped into the water and waded out towards the channel to meet him. His strokes weakened just as the foremost rescuer reached him, and he collapsed and died. “THERE’S THE REASON.” George Markham, of Milperra Road, Bankstown, who first reached the unfor-. tunate boy, actually saw the shark turn over before it attacked him. “I was fishing on the. Moorebank side, of the river," he said, “when I saw thethree boys dive into the water. Soden was about 10 yards in front of the others when suddenly I saw the black fin of a shark a few yards from him. Momentarily I was too terrified ’~> shout. Then I cried out, ‘Shark.’ At the same time the shark, which was. about 12 or 14 feet in length, turned over as it sped towards the boy. Its tail lashed the water. Then the water was tinged with blood. “Soden shouted out ‘Shark’ to the other boys< who immediately made for the bank. John McKenzie, who was fishing with me, dashed into the water with me towards the boy. I reached him first. The water surrounding him was tinged with blood and he must have lost a terrific amount, but still he swam on. He was the gamest boy I’ve ever seen. Then I grasped him, and his hand seemed to go limp in mine. Together with McKenzie I carried him to the shore, and we did what we could for him. But it was too late." Early in the morning, Markham continued, he had been fishing at the same place, but had not caught a fish. He remarked to a companion that shoals of fish were passing, and that the previous day they had caught several dozen. Suddenly McKenzie shouted out, “There’s the reason,” and a huge shark cruised lazily past, only a few yards from the bank, in shallow water. It made for the deep channel, where the tragedy later occurred, and disappeared. Swimmers were told of the shark’s presence, but took no notice of the warning. Two hours after the tragedy the shark was seen again cruising in the vicinity of the attack, and chasing the shoals of mullet, which it had followed from the mouth of the river, more than 20 miles away. Numerous local residents saw the black fin occasionally break the surface, and later many baited lines were set. Shortly after 8 o’clock Mrs. Morrin, who lives in Birdwood Road, Upper Bankstown, took her five small children down to the George’s River, at Kentucky, for a swim. For some time they sat on the bank, until the arrival of a plan named James Schofield, when they decided to enter the water together. The river shelves gradually out to the channel in the centre, and is about 100 yards across. The children waded out into the stream for about 10 yards, where the water is about four feet deep. They were shouting and laughing and splashing one another, while their mother watched from the bank. Together with her brother, Thomas, 10, Beryl, who is 13 years of age, swam out to a sandbank some 10 yards from the shore. Suddenly she screamed in agony, and the noise of splashing was heard on the shore. Her brother thought she was joking, and called out to the others to take no notice of her, but her screams, persisted, and Mrs. Morrin asked Scho-

field to go out to see what was the matter. Schofield waded in, and swam out to the Screaming pitifully, the girl held up the mangled stumps of her arms. “A shark has got me. My arms are gone,” she screamed. « The man was horrified at the terrible nature of her injuries. Her right arm had been torn off above the elbow, and her left hand had been bitten through, and was hanging by a piece of flesh. Blood was gushing from her wounds, and she was at the point of collapse. Schofield grasped her arms above the elbows, and by exerting great pressure stopped the flow. He carried her towards the shore, and was met half-way by Mrs. Young, who lives near by, and who had jumped into the river fully clothed to assist. In the meantime the other. children had scrambled ashore, and, terrorstricken, watched their older sister being brought in. Towels and belts were obtained, and ligatures were hastily applied. One of the children then raced up to the public telephone nearby, and the Canterbury-Bankstown ambulance was summoned. The officers stopped to pick up Dr. Thomson, of Bankstown, and raced out to the scene. The little girl was given immediate treatment, and relief from her terrible pain. Man-eating sharks have been seen cruising along many of the popular surfing beaches, and special precautions were taken by the surf club to have a constant watch kept. Look-out men were doubled on most beaches. A big shark was later hooked on a line near where Soden was killed, but it got away. The girl made good progress at the hospital, and it is belie', '. that she will recover. A fund was started for her and there was an immediate good response. Since 1919 people have been attacked along the coastline or in the rivers and estuaries of New South Wales. Of that number 16 died- from the injuries, and nine survived.