Authorities are desperately trying to find the body of a surfer who was mauled to death by a shark in front of his girlfriend in Western Australia.
New Zealander Steven Payne, 37, was killed by a shark while surfing with his partner at Wharton Beach on the south west coast. Mr Payne was in chest-deep water about 50 metres from shore when the attack took place on Monday.
But his shocked partner and other onlookers could do nothing as they heard his screams.
Authorities rushed to the remote beach around midday, shortly before closing the beach and starting a search.
The rescue quickly turned into a recovery mission when drone footage of the attack taken by a member of the public was shared with police.
Mr Payne's surfboard was found with bite marks, but authorities are yet to locate his body.
Western Australia Police Force Senior Sergeant Christopher Taylor said on Tuesday Mr Payne was with at least two surfers when he was attacked but there was “nothing they could do, nothing”.
Drone footage and witness accounts made it “so obvious what had happened”, the Sergeant added.
The search resumed on Wednesday morning, with the surfboard due to be tested in the hope of identifying the species of shark responsible.
The attack came just weeks into the couple’s six-month trip around Australia with their dog.
“It (the drone footage) shows a lot of blood, the shark and some other things in there I don't particularly want to go into and I don't think anybody else needs to see other than maybe the coroner and some other experts who will determine the type of shark and size,” the Sergeant said, adding that the girlfriend was “distraught”.
“Her life was turned upside down... You can imagine how she is, it's just horrible. It is heartbreaking obviously and the whole community of Esperance feels the pain - not as much as the family, they're distraught and trying to come to terms with what happened.”
Mr Payne worked as a sales and marketing director in Melbourne and was a volunteer firefighter.
He grew up in New Zealand busy Lower Hutt city and was known as a talented rugby player by his school friends. His family are believed to be on their way.
Mr Payne was a “really good lad” who had only moved to Melbourne in recent years, one school friend told Australian TV channel 7 News.
“He was an incredible person who was always there for his mates,” another school friend told 7 news, adding that the news was “devastating”.
Mr Payne had dated his girlfriend for more than 10 years and had previously lived in Namibia.
Witnesses reported seeing a “massive shark” attack Mr Payne.
Shark monitoring website SharkSmart also detected an unidentified species of shark minutes after the attack off the popular Esperance shoreline.
There have been three fatal shark attacks in the area in the last eight years.
