i-Independent
SYDNEY — When a British man was filmed wrestling with a shark in Australia as it threatened children playing on a beach, the online footage went viral around the world and he was hailed as a hero.
Unfortunately for Paul Marshallsea, on sick leave from work with stress at the time, his bosses at the children’s charity that employed him saw the video — and he has been sacked for breach of trust.
Mr Marshallsea, 62, from Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales, had been away from his role as a project coordinator at the Pant and Dowlais Boys and Girls Club since last April. He claims that he and his wife, Wendy, 56, went on holiday on the advice of his GP and had been enjoying a barbecue on the beach outside Brisbane in January when they heard cries of “Help, shark!”.
The charity worker argues that he risked his life at the beach when he grabbed the 6ft shark by the tail.
But when they arrived back in Britain, Mr Marshallsea and his wife — who worked for the same charity and was also off ill at the time — found letters informing them they had been sacked.
Mr Marshallsea says he is “disgusted” by the way he has been treated. The charity has been advised by its solicitors not to comment.
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