A man has been airlifted to hospital after a suspected shark bite off the Irish coast.

The incident happened on a small boat off County Waterford, in the south of the country, on Tuesday afternoon.

A man on board suffered a leg injury, a spokesperson for the Irish Department of Transport said on Wednesday.

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They said: "At approximately 4.15pm yesterday, the Irish Coast Guard's Marine Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Dublin were alerted by a 999/112 call to an incident on board a small fishing vessel south of Ardmore.

"The report was that a male on board the fishing vessel had a leg injury inflicted by a bite from a shark."

A coast guard helicopter and two lifeboats attended the scene, the spokesperson added.

The casualty was then winched on board the helicopter and taken to Cork University Hospital.