West Australian man Ben Gerring has lost his fight for life, four days after an attack by a great white shark that occurred while he was surfing at Falcon, south of Mandurah.
Gerring was mauled by the shark on Tuesday afternoon as he surfed approximately 250m from shore. The 29-year-old lost his leg above the knee in the attack, and was airlifted to Royal Perth Hospital.
Compounding the tragedy, Gerring’s fiancee Jasmine Boyer is pregnant with their child. She kept a vigil by his bedside, but sadly, his condition worsened on Friday and he passed away overnight.
On Wednesday of this week, WA authorities set baited drum lines in the area of the attack, and caught a great white shark, which died on the hook and was later taken out to sea.
While it has been concluded from the bite marks on Gerring’s surfboard that a great white was responsible, the size of the shark is unknown, and it is unclear whether it was the same shark caught on the drum line.
A crowdfunding page set up to help Gerring’s family has raised $24,000, and they have thanked all who contributed for their support.
Source: News Corp.
