Fisherman seriously injured by shark off Australian coast

MELBOURNE, Australia – A fisherman has been seriously injured when a shark bit his hand near the Australian coast.

Ambulance Victoria said in a statement the man aged in his 70s was alone in a boat off Queenscliff, southwest of Melbourne in Victoria state, when he was bitten by a 1.5-meter (five-foot) shark on Tuesday.

The ambulance service would not comment on an Australian Broadcasting Corp. report that the man had caught the shark and was bitten as he attempted to pull it into the boat.

The man drove the boat two kilometers (1.2 miles) to a marina to find help. He was flown by helicopter a Melbourne hospital in serious condition.