Elinor Dempsey uninjured after a great white shark leaves bite in her board

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Elinor Dempsey, 54, of Los Osos, California, was surfing at Morro Strand
She first thought shark underneath her board was dolphin until it became 'aggressive' and took a 14-inch bite out of her surfboard
Surfer swam to shore and didn't look back at the predator, which experts believe could have been up to 15 feet, though others say it was a juvenile

By Associated Press and Dailymail.com Reporter

Published: 20:39 EST, 29 August 2015 | Updated: 09:43 EST, 30 August 2015

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A surfer managed to escape a great white shark uninjured on Saturday after the animal bit through a sizable chucnk of her board off California's central coast.

Elinor Dempsey, 54, of Los Osos, California, said she was surfing at Morro Strand State Beach, just north of Morro Bay, around 10am when a shark swam under her board before chomping on it.

Dempsey then pushed her board, which now has an approximately 14-inch wide bite mark in it, toward the shark as she jumped off into the water.

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Elinor Dempsey, 54, of Los Osos, California, was surfing at Morro Strand State Beach Saturday morning when a shark appeared beneath her and chomped on her board

The surfer said she first thought the sea creature was a dolphin before it became 'aggressive'. The bite was later measured at almost 14 inches wide and eight inches deep

She described to the San Luis Obispo Tribune what it was like as a large gray shape hovered just a few feet below her board.

Dempsey originally thought the animal was a dolphin, but then realized that it was a shark when it became 'aggressive' and she made a break for shore.

'I didn't know what was happening behind me but I didn't want to stop swimming,' she said.

'I'm not even sure I was thinking anything other than oh my god, swim,' she added.

Some of the surfers helped Dempsey reunite with her board that was still attached to her ankle and she got back on it to get to shore.

Other surfers who saw the attack warned everyone else to get out of the water.

Experts have said that the shark may be a juvenile or an adult, with sizes ranging from six to 15 feet. Above, beach-goers look at the board, which is being sent for analysis

Dempsey (left) said that she was thinking about nothing but getting to shore after getting off her board and making a break for it

Officials closed the beach for 72 hours and posted warning signs at nearby beaches, said the beach's supervising ranger, Lisa Remington.

Experts will analyze the bite mark and teeth pattern to determine the size of the shark, believed to have been a great white.

A US Fish and Wildlife biologist who happened to be in the area and examined the board estimated that the shark was a 6-foot-long adult male.

Some have speculated that the 'investigative' bite came from a juvenile shark that was still learning what to hunt for, according to KSBY.

However Ralph Collier, a renowned shark researcher at the Los Angeles-based Shark Research Committee, said that the bite may be from only 30 per cent of the jaw.

Officials closed the beach after the incident, when surfers yelled at other to get out of the water because of the suspected great white. Above, Morro State Beach

'You could be looking at an animal 13 to maybe 15 feet,' he said.

Dempsey told the Tribune that she was shaken by her close encounter with the shark and might take a break from surfing.

'I'll be staying close in from now on,' she said while at the beach. 'I'll probably be on my boogie board for a little while.'

However, later in the day Dempsey said she loves surfing and would not let the incident discourage her from going back into deeper water.

Her close encounter with the sea creature was the first of two shark incidents off the California coast on Saturday.

Further south in San Diego County a one-and-a-half mile stretch of beach was closed after the confirmed sighting of a hammerhead shark thought to be up to ten feet.