I'm not sure if you have heard, but on Saturday there was a fatal shark attack near Brisbane. It occured at an island beach we had been considering visiting, but hadn't gotten around to organizing the ferry reservations. It was the first fatal attack in 44 years, but all the same it is somewhat worrisome since apparently there have always been sharks in the area, and there were even baited hooks on drum lines out in deeper water, but it's not widely publicized that there even is a danger. Surprisingly, the victim was swimming in waist deep water only about 50 feet off shore. The link to the article is on the side, but as the news website is updated, you may have to search a bit.
Sadly, a seven year old girl was also killed last weekend in far northern Queensland by a jellyfish sting. Stingers are a well known danger from November to April and most popular coastal beaches are closed. (The reef and offshore islands like the Whitsundays are generally safe year round as the box jellyfish stay to the coast and river estuaries.)
I know all this sounds quite frightening, but there is still a much greater risk in driving a car on I-5 than swimming at the beaches near Brisbane.
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