Justine finally has say
SHARK attack victim Justine Barwick has spoken to her husband Craig for the first time after she was mauled in the Whitsundays.
Authorities have now caught six sharks at Cid Harbour in response to the attack of Ms Barwick on Wednesday and Melbourne schoolgirl Hannah Papps, 12, less than 24 hours later.
Ms Papps was yesterday in a serious but stable condition in Queensland Children’s Hospital after being listed as critical a day earlier.
Tasmanian Ms Barwick has had surgery to her leg and is in a stable condition in Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital intensive care unit.
Mr Barwick yesterday said he had spoken to his wife for the first time since she was winched into the RACQ Central Queensland Rescue helicopter after the attack.
“In typical Justine fashion her first words to me were ‘ sorry I have caused so much trouble’ and she is asking after the welfare of family and friends,” Mr Barwick said.
Fisheries confirmed a 3.7m tiger shark and a 1.2m black tip shark were caught on a drum line yesterday.
They were killed, taking the number of sharks caught on the drumlines to six.
“The message is these waters are not safe for swimming,” a statement from the Department of Agricul- at Cid Harbour ture and Fisheries said.
“During this holiday period, we urge people to exercise caution, stay out of the water and not throw food scraps overboard from boats.”
Mr Barwick said the attacks in the Whitsundays were “particularly personal to me and my family”.
“The reaction by the Queensland Government setting drumlines and culling sharks is understandable and in some ways I appreciate it,” he said. “However we have to understand that while there have been two attacks in rapid succession, shark attacks are rare and sharks play an important role in the ecosystem of the Great Barrier Reef.”
Meanwhile, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has defended the Fisheries Department’s use of drum lines in Cid Harbour.