12-year-old boy fighting for life after Sydney Harbor shark attack

A 12-year-old Australian boy was fighting for his life after suffering catastrophic injuries in a shark attack in Sydney Harbor, surviving only because his friends leaped from a cliff and dragged him back to shore, authorities said.

The attack happened around 4:20 p.m. Sunday after the boy jumped from a 20-foot ledge known as Jump Rock near Shark Beach in the eastern Sydney suburb of Vaucluse, police said in a statement. Police said the boy suffered severe injuries to both legs from what is believed to have been “a large shark.”

His three friends immediately jumped into the water and pulled him to shore, actions authorities said likely saved his life.

“The actions of his mates who have gone into the water to pull him out have been nothing but brave,” said Superintendent Joseph McNulty of the New South Wales Police Marine Area Command, calling the injuries “very confronting” for the young rescuers to witness.

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A ferry sails past a closed beach at Vaucluse in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, a day after a boy was attacked by a shark. (Sitthixay Ditthavong/AAP Image via AP)

Local media reports said the boy lost both legs in the attack.

“He is in for the fight of his life now, and the actions of emergency services yesterday gave him that chance,” McNulty said.

A net runs into Sydney Harbour at a closed beach at Vaucluse in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, a day after a boy was attacked by a shark. (Sitthixay Ditthavong/AAP Image via AP)

The attack was one of three shark encounters reported in the Sydney area in just over 24 hours.

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On Monday evening, a surfer in his 20s was bitten on the leg by a shark off North Steyne Beach in the northern suburb of Manly. Bystanders pulled him from the water before he was taken to a hospital in critical condition, police said.

Earlier Monday, an 11-year-old boy escaped unharmed after a shark bit into his surfboard at Dee Why Beach, also north of Manly.

Authorities believe bull sharks, like the one pictured above, may have been responsible for at least two of the shark attacks. Police said the 12-year-old boy’s injuries were consistent with those from “a very large shark.” (Luis Javier Sandoval/VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images, File)

Authorities believe bull sharks may be responsible for at least the first two attacks. Police said recent heavy rainfall had increased murky freshwater runoff into Sydney Harbor, conditions known to heighten bull shark activity.

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Sydney’s northern beaches, including North Steyne and Dee Why, remained closed as a precaution. All three locations have shark netting, though officials said it was not immediately clear whether the attacks occurred near those barriers.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.