Family Hailed As Heroes After Saving 2 Teenagers From Shark Attack

A family has been hailed as heroes after saving two teenagers from a horrific shark attack in Australia.

Peter and Dianne Hobbs were on a beach holiday with their children when the incident took place at Ocean Grove beach in the southwestern Australian city of Geelong around 7.20 p.m. Monday.

While Peter was teaching his daughter how to surf, he saw the victims at the mercy of a shark, reported 9 News. The sea creature had reportedly been spotted less than 500 meters from the shore.

Peter initially believed the teenagers were playing but soon realized that wasn't the case.

"We just initially thought they were playing, and before long they started yelling out that they had been bitten by a shark," he told the outlet. "We were still in a state of disbelief, but we just went into action stations really."

Dianne, a trauma nurse, was able to get medical help at the earliest to treat the victims as soon as they were helped out of the water.

"Initially we were able to tourniquet her leg," Dianne said, pertaining to the female victim.

Peter called an ambulance, while the couple's children also helped treat the victims who were in a state of shock following the shark attack.

Fortunately, it didn't take long for the ambulance to get to the scene. The victims were then transported to Geelong Hospital, where the female victim was treated for lower-body injuries. The male victim, who suffered minor injuries, was also given medical attention, according to Yahoo News Australia. Both the victims were declared to be in stable condition at the hospital.

Peter wrote about the incident in a Facebook post, which has so far garnered more than a hundred comments from people praising the family for their great work.

Leonardo Guida, a shark scientist at the Australian Marine Conservation Society, told 3 AW Newstalk that the shark was likely a bronze whaler, a narrowtooth shark mostly found at temperate latitudes. Mature male sharks from the species tend to be 6.6- to 7.5-feet-long while adult females are likely to grow up to 7.9- to 9.8-feet-long. These sharks are often seen close inshore or nearer to the surfing zone, feeding on schooling fish.

"Bronze whalers this time of year will come into Port Phillip," Guida told the outlet, adding: "They're also known to come quite close to shore in the surf areas as well. They could be making their way back up into the bay... and getting ready to pup in the summer waters."