The state government has today met with Eyre Peninsula councils to discuss ways to protect ocean users on South Australia's west coast from the dangers of sharks. Locals are still reeling from a fatal attack earlier this month, with many calling for increased funding to help keep surfers safe.
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00:00Dunny Lee has been surfing the Granites since childhood.
00:05A spate of shark attacks in the area has him sounding a $29 alarm.
00:12People in the water are going to hear that and they're going to come in.
00:15A new weapon of warning after 28-year-old Lance Appleby was taken by a shark at the
00:19Granites earlier this month.
00:22It's the fourth fatal attack in SA waters in the last two years.
00:26Sandy Bay's idyllic coastline is popular with both tourists and locals, but Mayor Travis
00:31Barber says the mood around town has changed.
00:34Hardly anyone's going in the water.
00:36I'm getting comments from people that haven't been in the water since the day of the incident.
00:40I've got people coming up and saying they've booked holidays to Indonesia to go surfing
00:44because they won't get in the water.
00:46Coastal communities are calling for more government action.
00:49And it is really upsetting to me that it takes something like this to bring on the
00:57dedication and motivation for change.
01:00Last year, the state government announced close to half a million dollars for a range
01:03of measures to increase safety on remote beaches.
01:06The $450,000 that we've been given is crumbs.
01:11We're not really even getting a slice of the pie.
01:13The government and council come in together to discuss shark mitigation strategies.
01:17Our coastline is longer than New South Wales and Victoria combined, so no one is suggesting
01:23that we can put netting all the way along the South Australian coastline.
01:26What we need to look at is what is the evidence and what is going to be most effective.
01:29Life-saving measures on the horizon, which communities hope will make big waves.