Shark Bites Woman's Head, Schoolchildren Flee Water

A shark bit a female diver on the head off a South Australia beach, causing schoolchildren to flee the bloodied waters in terror.

The woman, 32, had been diving near a reef at around 1:20 pm near the Port Noarlunga Jetty, to the south of Adelaide, when the shark attacked, the South Australia Ambulance Service said in a statement, as reported by ABC.

It is not clear what species of shark was responsible for the attack, but Australia is home to a variety of species, including the Big Three: the great white shark, the bull shark and the tiger shark. These shark species are known for attacking humans the most, although such incidents remain relatively rare.

The International Shark Attack File, which is managed by the Florida Museum, says that Australia is the country with the second-most recorded shark attacks. The first remains the United States. Since recording began in 1580, Australia has seen 691 unprovoked shark attacks in its waters. New South Wales is the Australian territory with the largest number of attacks. South Australia has seen a total of 42.

A group of children on a field trip, as well as other beachgoers, fled the water in a panic as the woman began bleeding heavily. A rescue boat quickly made its way to the female diver and treated her injuries on board, before she was brought to shore to wait for an ambulance. At first, paramedics deemed that her injuries were life-threatening, and she was rushed to hospital. An update from South Australia Police, however, said that, while the wound is serious, the woman's life is not in danger, 7News reported.

While everyone was evacuated from the water, authorities started searching for the shark, but no sign was found, and people were allowed to return to the water.

A witness to the incident, Charlieze Nalzare, told ABC Australia that she had been on the same beach when she heard screaming.

"We were on our way into the water and then one of the girls from the club came down and said, 'Can you get out?'"

Another witness, Eric Tink, told ABC that he had just arrived at the beach when he saw the commotion.

"A few of the people said she was jetty jumping, and it happened just to the right of the jetty, in between the reef and the shore, which is pretty rare," Tink told the news outlet. "Everyone panicked and got out of the water."

Tom Bearne told ABC that the whole thing was pretty horrifying. "I've never seen anything like that down here as long as my life and I've lived down here my whole life," Bearne said.