On Thursday the 15th of November a 31yr old man was attacked by a shark whilst fishing from his kayak off the coast of Moffat Beach in Caloundra, Queensland.
The man was fishing approximately one-and-a-half kilometres off the coast when a 4m Tiger Shark rammed the kayak causing the man to be launched 2m away from the vessel as it capsized.
The man swam back to the kayak to find the shark still biting the underside of the kayak, before it let go, allowing the man to roll the vessel the right way up. Sitting back in the seat of the sinking kayak the man grabbed his GME GX800W VHF marine radio and made several emergency calls, one on Channel 9 to the Moffat Yakkers (local kayak group) and another on the dedicated emergency Channel 16, where he contacted the Caloundra Coast Guard.
The man continued to cling to the sinking kayak, waving his paddle to attract attention whilst continuing to liaise with the Coast Guard on the VHF. Shaking from the low water temperature and shock the man focused on remaining calm and making clear radio communication as he awaited rescue.
Help arrived a short time later from a local fisherman in his kayak, followed immediately by the Lifeguard Jet skis who pulled the man to safety.
This serves as an example of the benefits of carrying a VHF Radio when participating in potentially dangerous activities when out to sea. In this situation the GME GX800W was vital in swiftly providing contact to rescue authorities that aided in saving the life of this avid kayak fisher.