An American diver was killed today by a great white shark in the second fatal shark attack off the coast of Western Australia state in 12 days.
The victim, who has yet to be named, is said to have died from “shocking” injuries after witnesses reported seeing a 10-foot great white shark.
The American man was a 32-year-old U.S. citizen who diving alone off a 25 feet boat near Rottnest Island, which lies a few miles off the coast, when he was taken by the shark.
Nobody realized the man was missing until two people on board the dive boat noticed bubbles emerging from the water, 500 yards north- west of an area known as Little Armstrong Bay.
Thy thought that air had escaped from diver breathing equipment – and a short time later the American’s body rose to the surface with what were said by a local fisherman to be “shocking injuries”.
The great white shark struck 500 yards north of Rottnest Island, which is 11 miles from a popular Perth city mainland beach where a 64-year-old swimmer is believed to have been taken by a great white on October 10.
Last night, local police was interviewing witnesses so a report can be prepared for the coroner.
It is understood the American citizen was on a work visa and had been living near the coast, at North Beach.
Greg Trew, Water Police Senior Sergeant said the American had surfaced in “a flurry of bubbles” with horrific injuries, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
The American diver was believed to be dead when hauled aboard by his two companions.
Sergeant Greg Trew said the shark was seen by the man’s two companions as they were leaving the area after retrieving his body.
“It’s traumatic for everyone involved, it’s a tragic situation,” the sergeant said.
Authorities were trying to contact his family and have closed off the beaches on the popular resort island.
Officials cannot say whether the man was killed by the same shark that is believed to have taken Bryn Martin as he made his regular morning swim from Perth’s premier Cottesloe Beach toward a buoy about 380 yards offshore.
An analysis of Bryn Martin’s torn swimming trunks recovered from the seabed near the buoy pointed to a great white shark being the culprit. No other trace of Bryn Martin has been found.
Western Australia Police Sergeant Gerry Cassidy said:
“It’s a cloudy old day today which is the same as we had the other day with Cottesloe, and they’re the conditions that sharks love.”
The unnamed American is the fourth person to be killed by a shark off the Western Australian coast in 14 months.
Great white sharks can grow to more than 20 feet in length and 5,000 pounds in weight. They are protected in Australia, a primary location for the species.
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