Doc punched shark to escape attack

A BRITISH doctor has said he punched a shark on the nose to escape its jaws in Australia.

Charlie Fry, 25, was left with superficial puncture wounds on his right shoulder and upper arm after the attack, 60 miles north of Sydney.

Dr Fry, who has worked at the nearby Gosford Hospital for two months, said he had watched a video on YouTube in which Australian professional surfer Mick Fanning told of punching a great white shark to escape an attack unscathed.

Dr Fry, a surfing beginner, was with three friends when he was attacked.

He said: “I got this massive thud on my right-hand side . . . I saw the shark come out of the water and breach its head. So I just punched it in the face with my left hand and then managed to scramble back on my board — luckily a wave came, so I just sort of surfed the wave in.”