South Australian police are searching for the body of a 55-year-old man, “believed to be the victim of a fatal shark attack”.
Police said on Tuesday morning that a person had been seriously injured in a shark attack near Streaky Bay on Eyre Peninsula. Emergency services began searching for the missing person.
On Tuesday afternoon, police said the man’s body was yet to be found.
“Police and emergency services crews are searching waters near Streaky Bay for the body of a man, believed to be the victim of a fatal shark attack,” they said in a statement.
“About 10.20am on Tuesday, 31 October, the 55-year-old man was surfing near Granites Beach, south of Streaky Bay on the Eyre Peninsula, when witnesses reported seeing a shark attack the man.
“Eyre and western police immediately responded and initiated a search with the assistance of Police Water Operations, PolAir, State Emergency Service (SES) and local volunteers.
“The man’s body is yet to be found and the search will continue through to day’s end.”
Trevlyn Smith, a State Emergency Service incident controller, said on Tuesday morning a person was missing, a shark had been spotted and they had recovered a surfboard.
Local SES vehicles were on the scene, with boats and a helicopter coming in from surrounding areas.
According to an Advertiser newspaper report, a witness said they saw a 4.2-metre shark maul a man near the surf break.
The attack comes less than a month after 64-year-old Pamela Cook suffered serious leg injuries when she was bitten by a shark at Beachport on the state’s south-east coast.
A 46-year-old surfer was killed in a shark attack at Walkers Rock on the Eyre Peninsula this year and a 32-year-old snorkeller was taken by what was believed to be a white shark at Port MacDonnell in 2021.
There have been 22 fatal shark attacks recorded in South Australia and more than 50 other recorded incidents, according to the Australian shark incident database.
