More tragic news .....A young fella whilst surfing was taken near Wedge Island (full on attempt to render assistence )
5 Deaths and counting this year
Plus 2 serious encounters that i know of ,,,surf ski and,,,, divers off Geraldton.
Really is getting to much..........
Time for some action
If they were wild bears attacking people what would happens
And in other news a woman died in a car crash and her 2 children were badly injured. We should start hunting drivers.
Or dingos?
I wonder what the response would be if sea lions were killing touros on Rotto?
.....Hislop} Knows a little bit more than you or me and the Fisheries Department all put together.
I agree King.
Let's get serious, it is not acceptable for the fisheries minister to have no response to the situation.
We have played the wait and see if they go away long enough. These sharks have to be destroyed.
Why on earth dont a lot more skindivers, snorkellers (and by extension) windsurfers, surfers, or anyone who could be classed as potentially being tomorrows shark poo- carry a 12 guage smokey?
(official name "powerhead")
Our Western Australian firearms act permits you to possess one as long as its made to comply with the regulations and is stored and licenced as required.
This is about the only case where self protection is accepted as a legally valid reason to need a firearm.
The way I see it- a 12 guage is a bit more effective than poking a shark in the snout with your finger.
YMMV
Smokeys are illegal in WA.
It is crazy, you can get a license for a gun to kill wild life for fun but you can't have a Smokey for self defense.
No they are not illegal. You can get one, but it licensed under the Firearms Act as they can also be used to kill people.
What should need a licence........ internet usage.
Fuuckheads who post stuff on Twitter and Facebookfrom the beach, 2mins after a shark attack, making everyone who had a loved one surfing at Wedge today all upset.
Fkn losers who want to be first to break the news.
They should be shot with a powerhead.
I just checked the firearms act (16 sept 2011)
Looks like I was almost- but not quite right
smokeys are classed as a H2 firearm (underwater explosive device)
you can have them if you are a pro. or recreational diver- or can show occupational need.
so unless you can class falling off your board "recreational diving" you have little chance of legally owning a powerhead or smokey in W.A.
Has any one on this forum got a license to have a smokey ?
If so what guage smokey and what class licence does it come under ?
I'd certainly feel safer with one as a diver.
Not that I dive much anymore, scares the $hit outa me now.
And yes totally impractical for surfing
The two biggest stuimbling blocks are 'genuine need' and jumping through the hoops for the licensing process. Genuine need is probably catered for if you are a regular diver + the frequency of attacks. The second, the licensing process, it's designed to weed out those that want one on a whim and don't have the genuine need. Plus you have to get a firearm cabinet, secure it properly etc etc for 95% of those that think they need/want one it will simply be too hard and too expensive.
The other option is to make one yourself, they are out there but without the drop safety and the firing pin safety required in the act SN looked at you may as well be diving with a live grenade, having left the safety pin in the boat.
Intrested to know if the helicopter / plane did a run up and down the coast
You think weekend light offshores / perfect surfing conditions it would have been out and about .......not saying this would have changed the tragic facts of to days events
but hey may be.
Whats with the flight paths of all these light planes.......why not bring them in down along the coast for a bit??? and im sure pilots would love it.
Just an idea seeing that Fisheries have no solution, considering they have so many rules fines regulations and my money to go fishing... may be they need to address the deaths of 5 people with in 100km of Metro area
How long do we wait ?
It has been 5 fatalities, do we wait for 6, 7,8.
This has gone on far to long.
5 people are killed while doing a sporting activities, that is a tragedy.
Get angry, it is the Fisheries Minster to blame. We are funding Fisheries $3.75m over five years for shark research.
They are not doing a great job are they.
Take Whites off the endangered species list, and fish for them close to the coast.
Im for reducing numbers, i cant even go for a bodysurf or swim now without fear of being eaten. I also think the government needs to think about the impact on local tourism. i know a lot of people now who wont even step into the waters edge, or let their dogs into the water.
Sorry to hear this news poor bloke. I've surfed wedge years ago still got a place in my heart. Dunno what can be done about the attacks I can see both arguments but can say I won't be heading to WA for kitesurf trip this season going elsewhere. Kited with plenty of sharks before in shark bay/woodies/S.A. but the number of attacks recently just too much for comfort.
Terrible news. Really horrible.
Why not spend some money on a aerial shark patrol up and down the coast around Perth? They could patrol on weekends and during the week as well over summer.
It should not cost all that much in this day of aerial drones. If a small plane was used then perhaps the patrol could earn some money with sight seeers paying money to go on a flight up and down the coast.
In this day of mobile Internet and smart phones, shark sightings could be sent to beach goers up and down the coast. They could then make better decisions as to whether to go up in the water or not. The site could be subscription only or the patrol service could sell its information to other interested parties like the media.
It seems like there are more and more Great White Sharks around nowdays and there isn't much anyone is prepared or allowed to do about the sharks. Encounters between sharks and humans usually end up being bad for one or the other so it would be best if we can avoid each other.
the ocean is THIER home not yours - you want to go into their domain and then when you get attacked you get outraged and want to kill them?
Sounds like some of those bad US court cases where homeinvades sue home owners for using excessive force and injure them when they are breaking in to rob the place.
You all know the risks when you go in. if you dont like it dont go in.
Random death is a part of life.
We are living in a society today that is getting more bubble wrapped every day. its a tragic trend that is happening everywhere.
Really sad news. RIP
My condolences to all family and friends.
I also feel for the young fella on the jet ski, no one should witness what he did 
Leave nature as it is. It's their territory stay out of the water if you're worried. Trying to control wildlife puts the balance of nature out of whack.
Yea he looked pretty shaken. Definitely some thing he's not going to want to remember.
