A 35-year-old man from Sydney's south has been named as the victim of yesterday's fatal shark attack.
Simon Nellist from Wolli Creek, who was a certified diving instructor, was swimming at Little Bay when he was attacked just after 4.30pm on Wednesday.
It's believed Mr Nellist, who life savers said sustained "catastrophic" injuries in the attack, swam there every day.
A wildlife scientist told the ABC that given the size and and behaviour of the shark, as reported by witnesses, it pointed to a great white.
It was Sydney's first fatal shark attack since 1963 at Sugarloaf Bay in Middle Harbour.
Mr Nellist's social media is filled with underwater pictures, showing him as an avid ocean lover.
The dive instructor was part of Scuba Diving Social Club in Sydney's south.
Authorities found human remains in the water at Little Bay after the attack.
Surf life savers continued to search for more remains on Thursday, and the shark, which is estimated to be between 4 to 5 metres long.
Earlier, Randwick mayor Dylan Parker said the community was devastated and wary of returning to the open water.
"Undeniably this has shaken the community to the core. And people all across the area will be looking [at the water] a little bit differently," he said.
"There is always risk in open water, but the main message which we have for our community is that shark attacks, even though this is tragic, are exceptionally rare."
All beaches in Sydney's east and south will re-open on Friday after being closed on Thursday after there were no further sightings of the shark.
The Murray Rose Malabar Magic Ocean Swim scheduled for this Sunday was cancelled following the incident.
Organisers of the community event which raises funds for swimming lessons for children with a disability said their thoughts and prayers were with the family.
"Out of respect for the swimmer and his family, and following wide consultation with Randwick Council and experienced, senior Surf Life Saving personnel, we believe that cancelling the 2022 swim is appropriate," they said in a statement.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet also sent his condolences to the family at a press conference earlier on Thursday.
"Our hearts are with you at this difficult time, it's a reminder I guess to us all of the fragility of life," Mr Perrottet said.
Authorities have spent all day scouring the coastline deploying drones and a helicopter and have not sighted any sharks.
"Whilst we have all assets on the water trying to locate the animal, we just want to make sure that there is no other danger to any swimmers in that area," Steven Pearce, from Surf Life Saving NSW, said.
Department of Primary Industries temporarily installed six SMART drumlines between Little Bay and Malabar as part of a shark incident response plan.
NSW Police have recovered DNA remains from the water to confirm Mr Nellist's identity and will resume the search for the shark and victim on Friday.
A friend of the family told the ABC the family requests privacy.
