Kai McKenzie: Surfer who lost leg in horror shark attack on North Shore Beach talks about ‘s...show’ recovery

Kai McKenzie has struggled to come to terms with losing his right leg in a shark attack off a remote beach on NSW’s Mid-North Coast, but he doesn’t want that to define him.

In fact, the keen surfer is hell-bent on returning to the water as soon as possible.

“I’m going to f... sh.. up with a prosthetic,” the 23-year-old told STAB surf magazine.

He said he is talking with medical experts about getting one fitted above the knee by the end of the year.

Mr McKenzie spent two months in hospital after surgeons were unable to reattach his right leg, which was torn off by a three-metre-long shark in a harrowing attack in July.

He was catching a break at the isolated North Shore Beach near Port Macquarie at about 11 am on July 23 when the monster great white latched onto his leg.

Mr McKenzie fought off the shark by kicking it repeatedly before catching a wave to shore. There, he was helped by a retired police officer who used his dog’s leash as a makeshift tourniquet to stem the bleeding before the surfer was airlifted to hospital.

By some miracle, Mr McKenzie’s leg washed ashore shortly after the attack. It was quickly packed in ice and rushed to John Hunter Hospital in the hopes it could be reattached.

Unfortunately, the leg could not be saved, and Mr McKenzie spent two months in hospital coming to terms with his new life.

Although grateful to be alive, and for the support of his loved ones, Mr McKenzie told STAB magazine he’s been using dark humour to conceal his pain amid the “s...show”.

“It’s been raw. Some people can’t read a room and can be pretty insensitive,” he said, noting some people gawk at his missing limb.

“For now, I’m just cruising around on crutches, so it sticks out like dog balls.”

He said if it weren’t for his girlfriend Eve and his parents his mind “would be in a totally different place to what it is now. And for that I’m thankful.”

“I don’t want to be associated with this forever. I don’t want it to become my whole identity,” he said, adding that he hoped things would change once he got a prosthetic.

In the rush of medical check-ups and consultations since the attack, Mr McKenzie also reunited with the man whose dog lead saved his life on the beach.

“I would 100 per cent not be here if it wasn’t for him,” he said. “Thank f... he had a dog lead.”

He has also spoken with American professional surfer Bethany Hamilton, whose arm was severed in a shark attack in 2003, who offered him some frank advice.

“She just gave me a rundown of the reality of it and changed my whole perspective to stay positive.”

Adding to the pain of the shark attack was that it came shortly after Mr McKenzie had returned to the water since recovering from a fractured neck, neighbour Lauren Mac told The Daily Telegraph.

Ms Mac set up a GoFundMe campaign for the 23-year-old which has raised almost $200,000 to fund “every aspect of his recovery”. The campaign raised about $130,000 within its first 24 hours of being live.