A MAN has managed a one-in-a-million escape when a great white shark bit a hole in his kayak.
Nat Drummond now plans to buy a lottery ticket after dodging death in a surf ski challenge off the south Australian coast.
The 19-year-old athlete was a mile into the race off Seacliff Surf Lifesaving Club when a three-metre long great while ripped a chunk out of his kayak, throwing him in the sea.
The youngster was lifted “in the air” and then landed in the water, according to 9News.
He swam away uninjured and towards other competitors when lifesavers in an inflatable rescue boat to dragged him out of the perilous water.
He was taken shore and checked by emergency crews and eventually given the all-clear.
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The lucky Aussie said he was lucky to have made it to a nearby boat.
He said: “I just ripped my leg rope (attached to the surf ski) off and I swam towards these guys here who were paddling towards me, and then just jumped onto their craft and pulled me out of the water to safety.
“It was an absolute freak accident. One of those one-in-a-million things that happened.
“I might go and buy a lottery ticket.”
Photos show a massive hole in Drummond’s kayak just below his seat. Pieces of debris were found along the beach.
Drummond hopes the incident doesn’t deter beachgoers from the water.
“We were out in pretty deep waters, this shouldn’t put other people off,” he said.
Several miles of the beach around Seacliff has been shut while surf lifesavers search for the shark.
In Hawaii, a surfer narrowly avoided a shark that was directly under the oblivious beachgoer.
Lewis Watton was capturing footage of the idyllic scene with his drone on October 16 when he filmed the extraordinary close shave.
The video, shot from a birds-eye view, shows the group of surfers navigating the waters while preparing for a wave to hit.
But skulking a few metres below the surface of the turquoise waters is a 12ft long tiger shark.
One man can be seen paddling on his surfboard with his arms outstretched, preparing to catch the upcoming wave.
And it seems the predator had the same idea – as the mammoth shark swam directly towards him.
In a heart-stopping near miss, the beast glides directly underneath the unsuspecting bloke as he gears up for his next stunt.
The surfer manages to expertly climb on top of his board as the wave hits – at the same exact moment the shark passes underneath him.
But he still had no idea the monstrous tiger shark was swimming so close to him.
Lewis said of the incredible close call caught on camera: “The surfer did not know what happened.
“He continued to surf for a while after the incident. The shark was big and beautiful… It didn’t seem aggressive at all.”
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Tiger sharks are said to be responsible for more attacks on humans than any species apart from great whites.
However, attacks are still extremely rare.
