BRISBANE, Australia — A woman was in a critical condition Thursday after she was mauled by a shark on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, officials said.
BRISBANE, Australia — A woman was in a critical condition Thursday after she was mauled by a shark on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, officials said.
The 46-year-old tourist from Tasmania state was swimming Wednesday from a yacht in Cid Harbor on Whitsunday Island off the Queensland state coast when she was attacked by a shark that mauled an upper thigh, ambulance spokeswoman Tracey Eastwick said.
Dr. John Hadok of Mackay Base Hospital happened to be on a nearby yacht and helped slow the bleeding before a rescue helicopter arrived, Eastwick said.
“Fortunately he was able to assist in immediate treatment of the patient and to stabilize the serious hemorrhage that she had,” Eastwick said.
The helicopter landed at the town of Proserpine to refuel, Eastwick said.
The victim received further emergency medical treatment in Proserpine before she was delivered to the Mackay Base Hospital more than three hours after the shark attack, she said.
The woman reached the hospital after being flown more than 100 kilometers (60 miles) complaining of significant levels of pain, Eastwick said.
The hospital reported the woman remained in critical condition after undergoing surgery on Wednesday night.
