The Australian police were still searching for the body of a surfer early Wednesday after he was thought to have died in a “horrific” shark attack.
The 55-year-old man disappeared in the water near the popular surfing spot Granites Beach in the state of South Australia on Tuesday morning.
“The man’s body has yet to be found and the search was resumed early this morning,” the local police confirmed this morning.
An eyewitness, Ian Brophy, says he saw a giant shark “just launch and bite” before the shark pulled the man under the water.
Brophy says there was “blood everywhere”.
“I saw him in the wave and the shark had his body in its mouth – it was quite gruesome,” he told the local paper. The Advertiser said.
Brophy says that within a few minutes the victim’s surfboard was all that was left.
“(The shark) took every bit of him, I think.”
Jeff Schmucker was among those who entered the water to help emergency services search for the surfer’s body.
He told the national broadcaster ABC that the shark was “the length of a sedan”.
Great white sharks are known to traverse South Australia’s coastline. A teacher was also the victim of a shark attack in May this year, about 120 km from the place of Tuesday’s attack.
EXCLUSIVE: 7NEWS has obtained exclusive video of a monster white pointer minutes after it mauled a surfer at Granite Rock, south of Streaky Bay. The latest in 7NEWS Adelaide at 6pm | https://t.co/ZayjP2JYZK #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/2norrEBxen
— 7NEWS Adelaide (@7NewsAdelaide) October 31, 2023
