The New South Wales surfing community is banding together to support a 23-year-old surfer who was attacked by a shark yesterday.
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00:0023-year-old Kai McKenzie was bitten by a 3-metre wide shark at Port Macquarie's North Shore
00:07Beach yesterday, which is about 6km north of here.
00:11The Bonny Hills man was able to fend off the shark and catch a wave back into shore, but
00:16police have confirmed his leg was severed in the attack.
00:19The local community has since shown its support for the local surfer, so far raising more
00:24than $65,000 to go towards his recovery costs.
00:28Founder of Bite Club, a support group for shark attack survivors, Dave Pearson, said
00:33the incident has shocked the surfing communities across the nation.
00:37It sort of changes your whole day then because once you find out about it, people are ringing
00:42up to check on you, how are you feeling, you're ringing up someone else to see how they're
00:46doing because it does affect a lot of people, not only those who were on the beach on that
00:50day but also those who've been through the similar experience.
00:54All over Australia there were phone calls coming left, right and centre within the group
00:58just to make sure everyone's doing okay about it.
01:00An off-duty police officer from Newcastle helped save Kai's life using his dog's lead
01:05as a tourniquet to stop the bleeding.
01:08Kai's board shaper, Luke Short, said the 23-year-old is a well-liked and unique surfer.
01:13All of Port Macquarie's beaches are now open to the public while the 23-year-old remains
01:18in John Hunter Hospital.