The Department of Fisheries will patrol Albany waters this morning following two sightings of a large shark cruising off Emu Point late yesterday.

The two independent sightings happened around 5pm and follow the May 10 mauling by a white pointer of Albany school teacher Jason Cull off Middleton Beach.

Department of Fisheries’ Regional Manager Phil Shaw said a fisherman, as well as a person on a nearby beach, had made separate calls to police yesterday to say they were certain they had seen a shark off Emu Point and adjacent to Griffiths Streets, in the Middleton Beach area.

“The fact that two people saw something, and that the fisherman told police he was in a 12 foot dinghy and he thought the white shark he saw was at least as long as his vessel, has raised my concern,” Mr Shaw said.

“I have advised the local council of the new sightings, but I want to be sure that anyone venturing into the water around the Middleton Beach area, or at any other local beach over the rest of this long weekend is very cautious.

“As we saw in the days after the attack, last month, several sharks had been reported off Albany’s beaches, but these new sightings are the first since the beaches between Emu Point and Middleton Beach were re-opened.”

Mr Shaw said the Department of Fisheries would have a patrol boat out on the bay area from early this morning; however, people also had to be conscious of their own safety.

“We will patrol the local waters to see if we can sight any sharks,” he said.

“Nevertheless, I would again like to draw attention to our shark safety tips and also ask if anyone who sights a shark off Albany’s beaches can call the Water Police on 9442 8600.”

Mr Shaw said Fisheries monitoring of local waters would be conducted as required and new sightings would be investigated as they normally were under WA’s Shark Incident Emergency Response Plan.

“One thing that really helps is for people, if they do see a shark, to call the Water Police direct on 9442 8600,” he said.

“From there, the Water Police activate the Response Plan, advise the appropriate local authorities and help get any warnings out to the community in a prompt an efficient manner.”

Mr Cull survived the May 10 shark attack but required surgery to repair damage to his legs.

He had been swimming around 80 metres off Middleton Beach when he was attacked by a four-metre white pointer.

The shark dragged him under the water and only let go of his legs when he poked it in the eye.

Up to three white pointers continued to menace Albany beachgoers for the next 10 days before the beaches were finally reopened on May 20.

There have been several shark sightings in the area since that time.

Scientists where baffled as to why a female white pointer refused to leave the simming area for 10 days before finally heading back out to sea.

Hope to get the inside story when my wife gets home tonight (she works at DPI  in Albany)