Middle Brighton pier. 17 February year:1930 shark attack.

[hornet]

I found this little gem, I enjoyed the read..

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/4069322

SEIZED BY SHARK
YOUTH'S TERRIBLE DEATH.
OFF MIDDLE BRIGHTON PIER.
MANY WITNESS TRAGEDY.
HORRIFIED WOMEN FAINT.
Attacked by a shark off the end of
the Middle Brighton pier on Saturday after-
noon, Norman William Clark, aged 19 years,
of Point Nepean road, North Brighton,
was mutilated and dragged to his death
before assistance could be obtained. Be-
tween 80 and 100 persons saw Clark dis-
appear. So sudden was the attack that few
people realised what had happened until they
saw the shark grip Clark in its huge
jaws. It came at him again and again, and
eventually it disappeared with the body
50ft. from the pier. Witnesses described
the shark as being at least 16ft. long.
Clark, whose father died several years
ago, lived with his mother. He was a winch
driver by occupation. Frequently he visited
the Middle Brighton beach. Well-built and
tanned by the sun, he was a splendid
swimmer and diver, and it had been men-
tioned that he was fond of swimming in
the deep water at the end of the pier.
He went there on Saturday afternoon with
his brother, Russell Clark, aged 11 years,
and a girl companion. There were many
people on the pier at the time, most of them
having assembled to watch the interstate
dinghy race being held by the Royal Brigh-
ton Yacht Club. The beach was lined
with bathers, but only a few youths and
girls had been swimming from the pier.
Clark, it was said, was the only one to go
off the end of the pier. The pier itself is
several hundred yards long, and it is usual
for only strong swimmers to go into the
deep water.
Shark Seen Beforehand.
The shark was seen a few seconds before
it attacked Clark, but there was not enough
time to give him warning. Some time
before the tragedy Clark had been diving
from other parts of the pier. He then
went to the lower platform at the end of
the pier, and after sitting there with his
brother and the girl he dived in. He
went out about 50ft. and returned to the
platform. A few minutes later he dived in
again, and swam out the same distance,
returning to within 12ft. of the edge of the
platform. He was treading water when the
shark first attacked him. A few seconds
later, a man on the pier, according to
statements by witness, saw the shark
glide through the water as if it had just
come from beneath the pier. He called
out, "A shark," but Clark apparently did
not hear the warning, or perhaps thought
NORMAN CLARK. Help
NORMAN CLARK.
that someone was joking. The next second
he cried out, "Oh," and, throwing up one
hand, he disappeared under the water. Even
then few people realised that a shark had
seized him. As he came up, however, the
shark could be seen holding on to his leg.
Clark appeared to be sitting across its nose,
and he was punching it.
Women Faint on Pier.
Horrified by the sight, many women on
the pier fainted, and they had to be given
stimulants. The girl who had been with
Clark also fainted, and several men carried
her along the pier. It was some time
before she recovered. In the meantime,
other women and men tried to frighten the
shark away with noise, and it suddenly
disappeared, dragging Clark down through
the water. It carried him round to the
south side of the pier. When Clark came
up again, he was still trying to beat off the
shark, but his strength was fast ebbing.
The water for yards around was stained red.
The shark, with its fin and tail out of the
water, made another rush at Clark, and
almost lifted him out of the water as it
seized him round the chest in its jaws.
That was the last that was seen of Clark.
He went down suddenly, several witnesses
said, as if the shark had carried him away.
Legs Bitten Off.
Keith Young, who was fishing from the
end of the pier, said :— "Clark cried 'Oh,'
and seemed to be dragged beneath the sur-
face. I saw the shark, which was a ter-
rible monster. It was about 16ft. long
and about 3ft. across the back. Clark rose
again, and the shark came up underneath
him and lifted him right out of the water,
swimming away with him. Clark seemed to
have had his legs bitten off. He was hang-
ing on to the shark as if he were wrestling
with it. He was pulled under the water
several times, and then he was carried
swiftly away. I could see the shark's head
out of the water. After travelling about
30 yards it pulled Clark under the water,
and we did not see him or the shark any
more."
Girl's Narrow Escape.
Another eye-witness said that he was
standing on the pier while Clark was
swimming. "I saw a huge dark shadow
go past the end of the pier, and I realised
that it must be a shark," he said. "It was
a huge monster," and was dark grey in
colour. I called out 'A shark!' and looked
at the man in the water. About 10 sec.
later Clark was pulled under the water,
which instantly was bloodstained. Clark
did not have a chance, but seemed to be
fighting the shark. He was carried away
towards the south buoy, where he disap-
peared. The girl who had been with Clark
was just about to dive into the water to
join him when the shark appeared."
Wanted Him to Play Cricket.
Mr. David Clark, an elder brother of the
victim, said yesterday that his brother
was a Sea Scout, and he took an active
interest in all kinds of sport. "Norman
was a keen cricketer, and on Saturday I
wanted him to play in a team of which I
am a member," he added. "We were a
man short in my team, and I wanted him
to fill in the vacancy. He said that he had
made arrangements to go swimming."
Shark Seen Again.
Immediately after the tragedy boats
rushed to the scene, but no trace of Clark or
the shark could be found. Shark-hooks and
oil-drums were immediately obtained, and
they were baited from the end of the pier
by Messrs. Neville Currey, E. G. Forrest,
and J. McNaughton, who watched the
hooks all night. They thought that the
shark would return during the night, but
it was not until about 9 o'clock on Sunday
morning that it came up some distance
from the end of the Brighton pier.
Mr W. White, of St. Kilda street, El-
wood, who has had long fishing experience
in the bay, was out early yesterday morn-
ing baiting for the shark. "I am certain
that it is the same shark that I have seen
several times recently," he said last night.
Once it came up to the yacht moorings
near the pier. A week ago it took my
schnapper line and swam with it to the
surface only a few hundred feet from
the pier. Then it seemed to look at the
boat, and it broke the line and hook with
one swish. It appeared to be an immense
size. It came back this morning, and
took one of my baits soon after I went
out. The next time it swam close to the
boat. I had my shotgun ready, and I
fired both barrels. The shark was very
quick, but I may have wounded him slightly.
From what I know of sharks, this one
will stay will stay near the pier for some time.
The danger of bathing from this pier has
been known for a long time, but boys and
youths have taken no notice of warn-
ings."
Fishermen's Warnings.
Experienced fishermen at Brighton claim
that they have been warning bathers for
weeks that there were sharks round the
pier. One fisherman spoke to a num-
ber of girls early on Saturday after-
noon. They were swimming near the
pier when he said :— "We have been catch-
ing a lot of sharks here during the last
few weeks. If I were you I would get
out of the water." One of the girls re-
plied, "Oh, that is all right, thanks. We
are not at all frightened, and, besides, we
always frighten them away." On Friday
night a shark of the grey nurse, man-eat-
ing variety was landed at the end of the
pier.
Arrangements had been made by the
Brighton police, it was learned yesterday,
suppress the practice of bathing from
the Middle Brighton pier. According to
the regulations of the Harbour Trust,
bathing from piers in the bay is prohibited.
The police intended to visit the Middle
Brighton pier on Saturday night to take
the names of youths indulging in the
practice.
SCARE AT PORT MELBOURNE.
Shark Approaches Bathers.
Bathers at Port Melbourne were startled
between 3 and 4 o'clock on Saturday after-
noon by a shark. A boy, M. Evans, son
of Mr. M. Evans, manager of the Port Mel-
bourne branch of the National Bank, was
swimming out from the beach when he
saw a shark coming towards him on top
of a wave. Its nose and fins were clearly
visible. Evans swam quickly back towards
the shore, and his cries alarmed between
200 and 300 bathers, most of whom left the
water.
Mr. Phillip Brookes, of Little Bay street,
Port Melbourne, said yesterday that re-
cently he has seen two huge sharks swim-
ming between the piers at Port Melbourne.
Report from South Melbourne.
A large shark was seen near the diving
platform at South Melbourne about half-
past 4 o'clock on Saturday afternoon. For
several minutes it swam slowly about near
the platform, on which three or four swim-
mers were resting, and then disappeared.
Mordialloc-Mentone Race Cancelled.
Owing to the tragedy the Victorian Ama-
teur Swimming Association's acting secre-
tary (Mr. L. Solomon), after conferring
with the Mentone club officials, decided to
cancel the Mordialloc to Mentone race. It
was considered that such risks should not
be taken.

[Sebb]

Wow, this actually happened in 1930?
Thanks for sharing.

[Kenle]

Geezus!! I thought this was gonna be a scare tactic joke to keep summer swimmers away from our fishing spots and piers. This is the real Jaws right at our doorsteps

[Lightningx]

That’s some scary stuff!
Thanks for sharing mate. Enjoyed the read!
Cheers

[purple5ive]

I suppose that why the brighton baths are caged.ive always wondered why it was caged and this might be the answer..
Thanks for sharing.
Cheers

[hornet]

It would seem back then there were lots of sharks in the bay...

It would also seem there may have been a couple of resident Great whites in the bay.

From the witness descriptions of the shark and length (16 feet) it's highly likely they were whites.

[taipan]

Remember as a kid in the ‘60s hearing the story of a guy dived into sharks mouth off Brighton Pier,
always though it was a suburban myth, till the computer age came I searched myself & found it.

[Kimtown]

megaloden was still alive in 1930

[ogsurffisher]

how very sad

[Tackleberry]

Hmmmmmm 16ft so 12 or 13 more like and as like all the other shark **** it was probably a 11ft bronzey ......