Shark victim spooked by conditions

Zac Golebiowski listened to his inner voice and got out of the water when he feared he might be attacked by a shark again in Esperance.

The 23-year-old was bodyboarding alone at the same spot as shark victim Sean Pollard recently but after two waves was too spooked to continue.

"I was scared because the conditions were exactly the same as the day I was attacked down there," Mr Golebiowski said. "It was overcast, I was nearly a kilometre out to sea in notoriously 'sharky' waters at Kelpids beach, and I was overcome with dread."

Mr Golebiowski, who lost his leg to a white pointer while surfing at Wharton's beach eight years ago, returned to the ocean within two years of his attack.

"People don't understand why I do it, but I simply love surfing and it's a good way to stay fit," he said.

"When I first heard of Sean's attack I just hoped he'd survive - then my thoughts turned to myself. Accidents like this always make you think hard about going back out there. We call that wave 'The Bombie' and when it works, it is one of the best left-hand waves in Australia.

"But the problem is, you're sitting on a reef that's two metres deep with huge drop-offs either side of it, in the middle of the ocean.

"You run the gauntlet just paddling out to it, and it's impossible not to think of sharks."

Mr Pollard, a 23-year-old Bunbury electrician, was attacked on Thursday.

The surfer lost his right hand at the wrist and his left arm above the elbow.

Mr Golebiowski can't help but compare his experience with Mr Pollard's.

"It's uncanny for me," he said. "We were both surfing remote locations east of Esperance, it was roughly the same time of year, we've both lost limbs, and there just happened to be a paramedic available to help out with first aid."

Both, too, were taken to Royal Perth Hospital but Mr Golebiowski believes it will be quite a while before his fellow victim grasps what his body is going through.

"There's probably not much happening in his mind right now," he said. "I didn't speak or eat for a week, as my body tried to deal with it.

"It was such a shock. One minute you're 'whole', and the next you have parts missing. That takes a while to compute and I just found it physically impossible to talk.

"I wish I'd written all of my thoughts down, because you lose the memories. It would be nice to be able to specifically recall how far I've come. At the time, I wanted to forget it, but now, I wish I'd kept a record."

Two great white sharks captured shortly after the attack on Mr Pollard were examined in Perth for possible links to the event but Mr Golebiowski isn't sure whether he supports their capture.

"I hate hearing of people dying and being attacked but at the same time, I hate killing animals," he said.

'I didn't speak or eat for a week, as my body tried to deal with it.'" Zac Golebiowski