Drones are flying over Coogee Beach this Sunday to help with shark sightings after a ban that prevented their use due to the proximity to Sydney Airport was temporarily lifted.
The renewed focus on the state’s shark program comes a day after a 35-year-old woman swimming between the flags, close to shore, was bitten on her leg and arms at the beach.
She remains in a stable but critical condition.
Overhead vision suggests a white shark, 3 to 4 metres in length was present in the area at the time. So far this year about 170 of the species have been detected and 60 have been tagged.
The NSW government has also not ruled out shark culls in response to the incident.
Loading…
Overnight, Surf Life Saving NSW (SLNSW) secured an urgent exemption from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) allowing for surveillance over Coogee Beach.
CASA rules prevent the devices being used near “airports with control towers” including “runway approach and departure paths”.
The NSW government minister Tara Moriarty said the government was now moving to work with CASA to make the arrangement permanent.
“They haven’t been able to use them over Coogee because of the airport,” she told the media on Sunday.
“The temporary exemption has been granted and we’ll work with them and CASA to see that it can be made permanent.“
Drones have been allowed to temporarily fly over Coogee Beach after a shark attack. (ABC News: Nick Dole)
When asked whether it had been a failure to not seek permission earlier, she said “none of this is perfect”.
“They haven’t been able to fly the drones over Coogee Beach but of course sharks don’t move into one beach at a time or at a day so they can be tracked from other beaches,” she said.
“We’ve had drones up at Maroubra and other beaches that are in this region to be able to see shark movement.
“We’re never going to have a perfect situation for managing sharks in the wild in New South Wales.”
‘We have to share the ocean every day’
Ms Moriarty said $30 million had already been invested in strategies to keep the community safe from sharks.
In response to the possibility of shark culls, she said: “Nothing is off the table.”
“We swim in the ocean with living, breathing animals and we have to share the ocean every day.
“Our mitigation program includes education to talk to people about the risks and when things are most high risk for getting in the ocean.
“We’ve put more money into research to track the movements of sharks, particularly bull sharks over in Sydney Harbour and around other beaches.
“So more drones in the sky, but nothing is off the table.“
The Department of Primary Industries has been asked for urgent advice, according to Ms Moriarty, “on how we can have more drones in the skies”.
Coogee Beach remains closed along with others in the Randwick City Council and Waverley Council areas.
The NSW government is working towards getting ongoing approval to use drones over beaches near Sydney Aiprort. (ABC News: Nick Dole)
Jet skis and drones are being used to decide when it is safe to re-open beaches.
Head of the NSW government’s shark management program, Marcel Green, said it was understandable there was disquiet in the community as the attack belied the warning signs.
“What we saw yesterday [Saturday] was quite a unique and different incident,”
he said.
“It wasn’t murky water. It was crystal clear. She was swimming between the flags, you know, doing everything right.
“So it was just one of those random events as the minister said, ‘We can never be protected 100 per cent at every beach, every day, all the time’.”
Jet skis are providing surveillance at Coogee. (ABC News)
A spate of shark attacks earlier in the year claimed the life of 12-year-old Nico Antic, while musician Andre de Ruyter lost a limb after being mauled in Manly.
Mr Green said two drumlines were in place yesterday and “within probably half an hour of the incident, our contractor had another two smart drumlines out there”.
He is warning beachgoers to be vigilant.
“Bull sharks are more of your riverine-type animal, whereas white sharks in particular are real surf animals.”
