A 40-year-old pastor tragically lost his life after being attacked by a shark while fishing with his family near Humpy Island in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, according to authorities and media reports.
Luke Walford, a youth pastor from Rockhampton’s Cathedral of Praise church, sustained a fatal neck injury in the incident, which occurred Saturday afternoon, as confirmed by Queensland state police. Emergency services reported that Walford succumbed to his injuries about 90 minutes later despite efforts to save him.
Authorities have not confirmed whether he was spearfishing at the time, though Walford had shared photos of past fishing activities on social media.
Humpy Island, part of the Keppel Bay Islands National Park, is a popular destination for camping, diving, and snorkeling.
This marks the first fatal shark attack in Australia since December 2023, when a 15-year-old surfer was killed by a suspected great white shark. Since 1791, over 250 of the more than 1,200 documented shark incidents in the country have resulted in fatalities, according to a national database.
