(Scypre.com) – A man named Simon Baccanello, who was 46 years old, was attacked by a shark while surfing in Elliston, South Australia over the weekend and is now missing.
Evidence, including what seemed to be a wetsuit and surfboard remnants, has been found off the coast on Monday. His damaged surfboard was located with a bite mark in the middle.
Fellow surfers who witnessed the attack described how Baccanello was pulled underwater while trying to fight his way back to the surface.
The South Australia Police have reported that “items of interest” have washed ashore near Walkers Rock, where the attack occurred.
The items include a piece of wetsuit material and small pieces of white polystyrene, which could be surfboard material.
The police are currently conducting a search, with consultation from the Baccanello family, in the area around Walkers Rock. Any remains are likely to drift ashore rather than out to sea.
Since February, this is likely to be the first fatal shark attack in Australia.
The February attack involved a 15-foot great white shark that killed a swimmer off a beach in Sydney.
Less than two weeks later, a 16-year-old boy was killed by a suspected bull shark in Perth, Western Australia, after jumping into a river.