A swimmer is missing and feared dead following a suspected shark attack at Sorrento Beach, a popular spot north-west of Perth, on Friday morning. Emergency services responded to urgent calls for help, and witnesses reported seeing a large shark grab the swimmer, pull them underwater multiple times, and drag them away. The incident has raised fresh concerns about beach safety, particularly as the beach's shark barrier—installed in 2016 to protect swimmers—was removed in 2020 due to high maintenance costs.

The suspected attack occurred approximately 15 metres from shore at around 10:15am near the Sorrento Surf Life Saving Club, where the missing swimmer had been on a boogie board with a friend. Witnesses observed a significant pool of blood in shallow water, and the shark species has not yet been identified. Sorrento Beach has been closed whilst authorities continue a major search and rescue operation. The attack comes during September and October, noted locally as peak danger season when migrating whales attract sharks to the area, and follows a separate shark detection by a monitoring drumline just ten days earlier.