News & Alerts

Alert issued on 18 March 2022

Alert level:

A shark ADVICE has been issued for Western Australian water users due to technical issues impacting the automatic posting of reported shark sightings to Surf Life Saving WA’s Twitter feed.

Situation:

• A fault has been identified that has caused the shark notification system to cease the automatic posting of reported shark sightings to Surf Life Saving WA’s Twitter feed. 
• The SharkSmart WA app and website, have not been impacted by this fault and continue to provide shark activity information. 
• Tagged shark detections, from the Shark Monitoring Network, have not been impacted by this fault and remain fully functional.
• The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) are working to restore the system as soon as possible.
• An update will be provided once the system fault has been resolved. 

 What to do:

• Adhere to beach closures advised by Local Government Rangers, Parks and Wildlife Service officers or Surf Life Saving WA.
• Use your Sea Sense and stay informed by checking for shark activity on the SharkSmart WA app and website.
• If you see a shark, report it to Water Police on 9442 8600. All shark sighting information reported to Water Police is provided to land managers, relevant authorities and to the public. 

What authorities are doing: 

DPIRD is working with external service providers to restore the system to full operational status as soon as possible. 

DPIRD is liaising with Surf Life Saving WA to manually post shark sighting information to the @SLSWA Twitter feed where possible.

Extra information: 

Switch on your Sea Sense and stay informed of shark activity information by checking the SharkSmart website – www.sharksmart.com.au/shark-activity, download the SharkSmart WA app or follow Surf Life Saving WA Twitter – twitter.com/SLSWA. Check www.sharksmart.com.au/news for updates to this alert and to view other warnings and media releases.

The Shark Notification System forms part of a range of shark mitigation strategies in place.  See www.sharksmart.com.au for additional information.