A youth worker has survived a shark attack at a popular tourist beach where a man was killed by one of the deadly animals two weeks ago.
Surfer Sam Heseltine narrowly escaped with his life after the shark bit down on his board at Cable Beach in Broome on the state's north-west coast about 7am on Wednesday morning.
He was taken to hospital in shock but was uninjured in the attack.
A photo of the board taken when the Broome local made it back to shore showed the shark had left visible teeth marks near the fin.
A shark attack has closed Cable Beach in Broome, north-western Western Australia, where a man was killed by one of the deadly animals two weeks ago
A friend of the surfer said he was 'a bit shaken' by the near-miss but was otherwise unharmed.
He seems fine, a bit shaken obviously, but he's a pretty solid guy,' the friend told ABC News.
'Initially he thought he'd just hit another surfer just next to him,' he said.
'The other guy that was in the water said, "No, it wasn't me". At that point he thought "Alright, that was a shark, I've got to go in."'
The species of the shark that attacked him is still unknown but initial reports suggest the man-eater may have been about 1m in length.
Shire of Broome Council has closed the beach and urged beachgoers to follow developments on the SharkSmart website.
The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development said it was co-ordinating an emergency response to the attack with local authorities.
The shark reportedly bit into his surf board but the man was uninjured in the attack (file image of a great white shark)
The attack comes after a swimmer, 55, was killed when he was set upon by a shark at Cable Beach on November 22.
He was bitten on the upper thigh and hand about 2km north of the beach's rocks.
Before his death there had not been a shark attack at Cable Beach in more than 25 years.