PERTH, Australia (27 Jan 2004) -- CHANNEL 7 secured an exclusive interview with a shark attack victim yesterday, paying him an amount likely to be double the cost to taxpayers of his recovery in a public hospital. But the mates who pulled New Zealand-born butchery quality assurance officer Allan Oppert to safety from the 3m shark on Sunday came to his defence again yesterday, from public disapproval. On Monday, dive operators and a Fisheries Department shark expert said Mr Oppert had asked for trouble by diving alone in 35m of water, 24km from the Binningup shore, north of Bunbury, while friends were fishing nearby. But David Morgan, 37, who took Mr Oppert and Mr Oppert's diving buddy Daniel Armstrong out on his boat on Sunday, said Mr Oppert, who had been diving for 30 years, was only taking a risk most experienced divers have taken at times. He said Mr Oppert, who again declined to speak to media apart from Channel 7, had gone on a dive alone to use up a remaining tank after two earlier dives with Mr Armstrong. Twenty metres below the surface, as he approached a good spot for crayfish near a coral reef, Mr Oppert had spotted the shark below him. He had inflated his buoyancy vest to ascend and was 10m from the surface when the shark charged. Its jaws had clamped down over both his legs and had vigorously shaken him. Mr Oppert had reached his dive knife strapped to his right calf but could only feel the gummy inside of the shark's mouth. The shark is believed to have swallowed the knife. | | Mr Oppert's speargun, strapped to his right hip, had protected his legs from some of the impact but was snapped in half. The shark let go when Mr Oppert's vest inflated again and he surfaced. Mr Morgan said it was good Mr Oppert had dived alone - even with himself and Mr Armstrong on the boat, it had been hard to lift Mr Oppert with all his gear from the sea. Seconds after the three had tumbled back into the boat, the shark passed underneath it. As they took off his gear, Mr Oppert had kissed the floor of the boat. Mr Oppert's injuries, which could see him off work for up to six weeks, had required 108 stitches and he might need knee surgery. Mr Morgan declined to say how much Mr Oppert had been paid by Channel 7. The money would be useful to pay for a $500 ambulance fee, physiotherapy and lost working time, he said. Channel 7 producer Mario D'Orazio also refused to say how much Mr Oppert would be paid. A source at Channel Nine, which bid against Channel 7 for an exclusive interview, said Channel Nine's last offer of $10,000 had been rejected. Mr Morgan said Mr Oppert had opted to accept Channel 7's offer because it was a local program. SOURCE - West Australian |
