(November 28, 2002) Many surfers gave thanks today for phenomenal surf up and down the coast. One surfer is grateful for surviving the most recent shark attack in Northern California.

On Thursday, November 28th, a great white shark attacked Mike Casey, 48, of Santa Rosa, who is a respected, local bodyboarder.

The day before the attack, a surfer had seen a shark chasing a seal while he was surfing Salmon Creek in Sonoma County, so he got out of the water. But this didn't keep him, or several other surfers, out of the surf at Salmon Creek the following day. Approximately 10-12 people were in the lineup on Thanksgiving morning when the incident happened. The surf was solid at one-and-a-half to two-times overhead. The weather was sunny. Air temperature was unseasonably mild- approximately 60 degrees by mid-morning. Surf conditions were ideal, but the crowd would soon be cleared out.

At approximately 9:45 AM, a great white shark lurched out of the water and clamped down on Mike Casey's legs.

An eyewitness, who requested to have his name withheld, recounts the chilling details, "There were four of us in a cluster. One guy was on a boogie board- about 10 feet from me. The shark jumped up a little bit out of the water- revealing part of its head and torso- and nailed the boogie boarder in the legs. The guy screamed. The shark began to pull him under, but it let go before it pulled him completely underwater. I think it must have realized right away that he wasn't a seal. The guy was kicking at the shark as it let him go. The shark looked to be somewhere between eight and fifteen feet long. I only saw about eight feet of the shark from just behind its head to before its tail as it came up, hit the guy, and arched back down into the water."

He continues, "We couldn't tell how bad it (his injury) was in the water. We paddled in with him. He got to beach on his own, so we didn't think it was that bad. We helped him up the beach because he couldn't walk. He had 6-inch long gashes (inner side of right leg and outer side of left leg) on each leg and a gash on his ankle. I think it just hit his legs. He was pretty cool through the whole thing. Everyone was actually really calm, which was nice. But on the paddle in I was thinking, "Oh shit! I hope it doesn't attack again!""

Once on the beach, fellow surfers tried to comfort Casey until paramedics arrived and worked to stabilize him. He could move all of his toes, which was a good sign. An ambulance and helicopter showed up soon thereafter. The medical personnel put him on an I.V. and flew him to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital.

Jan Cregan, nursing supervisor at Memorial Hospital, said as of Thursday night, Casey was in, "Stable condition. I don't know how extensive the injuries were, but I think he's going to be fine." Casey will probably spend a few days in the hospital.

Everyone cleared the water immediately in the wake of today's attack. After seeing Casey off, several surfers sat watching waves that would have look inviting on any other day. After witnessing the most recent shark attack first hand, no one dared to take up the surf's invitation. For a change, an early Thanksgiving dinner seemed more appealing than surfing on what is one of Northern California's best surfing holidays of the year.

State Park authorities stated that Salmon Creek Beach would be closed for at least five days following the attack.

One surfer who witnessed the attack stated, "It's a lot different when you see it than hearing about it. It takes the glow off surfing for a little bit. I'm sure I'll go surfing there again, but that'll always be in the back of my mind."

Send shark stories to Contact SurfPulse.

Read other shark-related articles in SurfPulse's Shark section.