A northern NSW mayor is calling for year-round drone surveillance, following a recent near-miss incident with a shark.
Surfer Brad Ross was attacked while surfing at Cabarita Beach on the Tweed Coast near the Queensland border last Monday.
Ross was physically unharmed but the shark took a huge bite out of his surfboard.
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The close call came just months after a teenager was bitten on the bicep, wrist and leg in a shark attack at the same beach in June.
Under existing funding, drone surveillance is only provided in peak swimming seasons such as school holidays or “as needed”, in partnership with Surf Life Saving NSW.
Tweed Shire Mayor Chris Cherry believes year-round surveillance would make locals and visitors feel safer.
“While we understand there are inherent risks in swimming and surfing in our oceans, if there are steps that we can take to make it safer, then it makes sense for us to try and take these steps, particularly at busy beaches like Cabarita Beach and Kingscliff,” Cherry said.
She has previously called for additional drone surveillance hours at other beaches in the shire, including Pottsville and Black Rocks.
Since last week’s attack at Cabarita Beach, two extra SMART drumlines have been installed, in addition to the five already in place there.
There are a total of 15 drumlines in the area and 305 across the NSW coast as part of the NSW government’s 2024–25 Shark Management Program.
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