Birubi Point beach in Australia shut down indefinitely after surfer attacked by shark

A 30-year-old surfer sustained injuries in a suspected shark attack on Saturday (28 October) morning at Birubi Point Beach, near Port Stephens, in Australia's New South Wales state.

Beach authorities shut down the beach after the injured surfer raised alarm at around 9.30am local time (11.30pm BST previous day).

Authorities reportedly said that the beach will be closed until police and council confirm the beach was safe. Meanwhile, shark experts from the state's department of primary industries will inspect the surfer's injuries to confirm if it was a shark attack.

The surfer was bitten on the foot and was bleeding profusely when he came out of the waters. A nurse at the scene tried to stop the bleeding, but did not succeed.

"It appears to gave been relatively minor but the bleeding did become more problematic," Surf Life Saving NSW spokeswoman Donna Wishart told the Daily Telegraph Australia.

The man was then taken to John Hunter hospital and was said to be in a stable condition, a spokesman from the Hunter New England Local Health District told the paper.

The area around Birubi point beach is reportedly a breeding ground for Great White sharks, and has seen a number of shark attack cases in the past.

In September 2016, the beach was closed for a brief duration after a shark, estimated to have been between 2.5 and 2.6 metres long, was sighted during an aerial search.