7 Jul 2013

Whale knocks surfer unconscious at Bondi Beach

9:14 pm on 7 July 2013

A New Zealand man has been knocked unconscious by a whale at Sydney's Bondi Beach.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service says the whale suddenly surfaced among a group of surfers close to the beach.

The ABC reports that Bishan Rajapakse, 38, was surfing with a friend when a whale "the size of a bus" surfaced close to the beach at around 10.30am on Sunday.

Mr Rajapakse says when he paddled over to take a look, he noticed the whale directly underneath him and woke up later on the sand.

Mr Rajapakse is in a stable condition at St Vincent's Hospital.

Witness Lachlan Harris said a group of about 15 surfers had been playing with the whale before the accident.

"They were playing and the whale was frolicking with them and having a lot of fun and sort of popping its head out," Mr Harris said.

"It just flicked its tail and some surfers were in the wrong [place] and the next thing you know a surfboard is flying in the air [and] swimmers are getting thrown out of the water. It was unbelievable.