Surfers at a beach in Sonoma county, California, used a surfboard strap as a tourniquet to save a man whose right leg was bitten by a great white shark.

Eric Steinley was attacked as he surfed about 50 yards from shore at Salmon Creek beach last Sunday, but managed to alert others in the water.

The 38-year-old said he managed to punch the shark in the face to force it to release him, then was helped ashore by a stranger who used his board strap to tie the tourniquet.

Other surfers added a second tourniquet before using a longboard as a stretcher and taking Steinley to a helicopter pick-up point. He was flown to Santa Rosa Memorial hospital, where doctors performed two surgeries to save his leg.

Well done to all involved, shark attacks are rare, and sharks are not the enemy, let’s respect them from a distance.