Shark caught as WA surfer fights for his life

A large white shark has been caught on drum lines set by authorities about 200 metres off Falcon beach near where a surfer was attacked yesterday.

Ben Gerring Source: Facebook

A large white shark has been caught on drum lines set by authorities about 200 metres off Falcon beach near where a surfer was attacked yesterday.

It's believed the 29-year-old has lost a leg above the knee and was in a critical condition on Wednesday morning, a Royal Perth Hospital spokeswoman said more than 18 hours after the attack.

The department said in a statement it believed, given the nature of the injuries and the location of the incident, it was likely a white shark of at least three metres long was responsible.

Surf Life Saving WA tweeted before 8am (WST) on Tuesday a 3.5m white shark had been sighted - several kilometres from the attack.

A person stands at the scene where the shark attack occurred (SBS) Source: SBS

Shocked and distressed fellow surfers and friends, including those who pulled him out of the water, gathered on Wednesday morning at Falcon Beach, where the incident occurred.

Mr Gerring screamed for help before being dragged under the water.

His friend, Mandurah Boardriders Club president Brian Williams, said Mr Gerring had just paddled further out into the ocean to catch a bigger wave when "all hell broke loose".

Mr Williams said he was getting ready to go out to surf himself when a group of men came rushing back to shore with Mr Gerring.

"They jumped to work straight away, it was pretty horrific to see someone you know in that predicament," he told ABC radio.

"There are images there that are going to be pretty hard to get out of your mind for a while ... I've spoken to a lot of the guys that are struggling at the moment with the scenes they saw.

Another local surfer, Gary Bing, who was there when Mr Gerring was attacked said he was told how the shark launched out of the water.

"He was on the beach at about 4.10pm and they were giving him CPR as the police arrived, the ambos got there about five minutes later then they kept doing CPR, the chopper arrived and they just kept pumping his chest. It didn't look good," he told 6PR radio.

"The board has got some teeth marks in it, but it has basically been snapped like something has landed on it, the snap is so clean it's unbelievable."

Fisheries has set baited drumlines in the vicinity of the attack to fish for the shark from first light on Wednesday.

The beach near Gearies Break and Surfbreak Lookout is closed.