Australian Professional Surfer Clint Kimmins recently posted to his Facebook page, “Just saw a guy’s leg get ripped off by a bull shark at Burleigh Cove. Soo heavy.”

He posted this as he looked out on the crowded waves, right before he went out to catch a few. Apparently, the false shark scare spread pretty rapidly… as people took the post seriously (at first.) But Kimmins admits that the comment about a shark attack wasn’t exactly “true,” and told a local newspaper, “The waves were so crowded this morning, I put up the message in the car park before I went out for a surf. It’s more of a safety factor, it’s not just me being selfish trying to claim the waves.”

Either way, a false shark claim isn’t exactly something to play around with, which is why, in the end, Kimmins apologized, sort of… “I can’t believe how gullible people are,” Kimmins said. “I can’t believe how fast [the shark report] spread. I’m really sorry if I wasted anyone’s time.”

[Via: The Adventure Life]