Officials say 10-year-old girl survives shark attack off Australia's east coast

SYDNEY – Officials say a 10-year-old girl has been attacked by a shark off Australia's east coast.

A spokeswoman for the New South Wales state ambulance service says they received a report the girl was bitten on the wrist by a shark on Tuesday off a beach at Lennox Head, 200 kilometers (120 miles) south of Brisbane.

Paramedics treated the girl at the scene for a serious injury to her hand and took her to a local hospital. She was in stable condition.

Although sharks are common off Australia's coast, the country averages fewer than two fatal attacks per year. Two men were killed in shark attacks off Australia's east and west coasts in the space of a week in November last year. They were the only fatalities for 2013.