East London surfer survives gnarly shark attack (updated Wed 16:43)

19-year-old Yellowsands local, Michal du Plessis is lucky to be alive after he was attacked by a four metre Great White shark at Yellowsands point earlier today (Feb 16). Michal was enjoying clean 3-4 foot solid waves with four of his close mates when, at approxomatly 1pm, the shark struck him from underneath.

Another surfer, Rodger Berkhout, who has 10 feet away when the attack happened said that, "Michal was paddling back from a smoker of a wave when the shark came out of nowhere and just mauled him. It pulled him a few metres leaving a trail of blood."

The shark then let go and Michal was able to catch a wave in. His friends were able to carry him off the rocks and into their car. 

Photo of Michal's board, taken after the incident.

Aiden Leppan, who was surfing with Michal, highlighted the severity of the injury.

“I took off my leash and tied it around Michal's leg to stop the bleeding, but there was so much blood. We put him in the back of Oscar’s bakkie. The blood was swishing around everywhere on the way for help. The cut was so deep (that) I accidentally put my whole hand in his flippin leg!" said Aiden.

Michal was rushed to a local doctor who called an ambulance. Michal is currenlty in a stable condition in St. Domincs Hospital where he is undergoing surgery.

"I had just caught a wave and was paddling back out on the edge of the drop off. All of a sudden something big struck me hard. The shark’s top jaw was over my leg and it started to crush me! It then pulled me under water and we met eye to eye," Michal recalls nervously. "I came up and shouted, ‘Shark! Shark! I've been bit!’ recounts Michal while in hospital.

“I kept saying to myself, ‘keep calm, breathe’, but it was getting hard to breathe. I thought I was going to die."

But despite this, Michal believes that he was let off easily with  and minimum muscle laceration and no bone damage.

When asked if he will surf Yellows again he said that it was unlikely.

"I don’t think I could ever surf there again, maybe with a Sharkpod, but even then I doubt it," said Michal.

Despite good conditions a day after the attack (Wed) Yellows was understandably empty.

Local East London legend, Nick Pike, thinks that it isn’t surprising that an attack happened at Yellowsands. "There is a river mouth close by and a steep drop off at point where they were surfing – conditions like that naturally attract sharks," says Pike.

After the gnarly ordeal Michal wants to know how eternally grateful he is to his friends, Oscar Miller, Logan Philpott, Aiden and Rodger, who saved his life.

"They are my hero's and best friends," said Michal. And thanks to the quick thinking of his surfing buddies Michal will probably be surfing again in the near future.

Report by Bruce Viaene