Man seriously injured in shark attack off central Queensland coast

A man is in a serious condition after fighting off a shark while swimming in the sea off the coast of northeast Australia.

The Queensland Ambulance Service was called to the scene at Yeppoon’s Rosslyn Bay about noon.

A man has needed emergency surgery after being attacked by a shark up to 3m long.

The 30-year-old man is reported to have been bitten and could have lacerations to his hands.

He explained: “The coast gard boat happened to be nearby because it was out doing a training run”.

Yeppoon Coast Guard deputy flotilla commander Paul Florian said the man was helped back into his boat by friends following the attack.

Coast Guard crew administered first aid on board as they transported the man back to Rosslyn Bay.

The swimmer was in a stable condition and would be transferred to another hospital in Brisbane later Sunday, a Rockhampton Hospital spokesman told AFP.

Mr Miers said the incident was the first shark attack he had heard of in the Rockhampton region.

There were 22 unprovoked shark attacks in Australian waters a year ago, one of them fatal, according to data compiled by the Taronga Conservation Society.