Posted by on March 19, 2005 at 11:07:17:
In Reply to: Deckhand killed in shark attack posted by on March 19, 2005 at 11:05:28:
Sydney - A man was killed in a shark attack on Saturday while snorkelling off the West Australian coast, police said.
A police spokesperson said the 26-year-old deckhand on a tourist charter boat was attacked by the 6m shark as he was snorkelling with a group of tourists off Pelseart Island, 500km north of Perth.
Police said witnesses reported the man was bitten in half by the shark. His body has not been found. No one else was injured in the attack.
Police have sent a helicopter and charter boats to the area to try to find the shark.
It is the ninth fatal shark attack in Australian waters since 2000. The most recent shark deaths occurred within a week of each other last December, one off Queensland state and the other off South Australia.