A FOUR-METRE shark has been spotted lurking near swimmers off the New South Wales coast, sparking fears of a third attack in as many days.
NSW police rushed to Wategos Beach at Byron Bay this afternoon after media helicopters located what appeared to be a large great white shark swimming close to shore at 1.30pm.
A police spokeswoman said surf lifesavers on a jetski tracked the shark south beyond the lighthouse at Cape Byron.
A local business owner said the water had been busy with swimmers as little as an hour before helicopters began circling the area.
He said it was unusual to see sharks in the area but today could have been particularly bad.
“There was a wedding in the water around 9.30 this morning,” he said. “They were all on surfboards in a circle.”
“I’ve never seen one out here so it’s pretty unusual.”
The sighting comes a day after Surfers Paradise surfer Mike Hoile was thrown into the air when a great white shark charged him at Lennox Point, around 22km south of Wategos Beach.
On Thursday bodyboarder Matthew Lee, 32, was mauled by a shark at Ballina’s Lighthouse Beach, less than 10km further south.
Meanwhile another man was knocked from his board at Flat Rock — in between Ballina and Lennox Head — last week.
The surf remains closed to swimmers.
