A swimmer who died after being attacked by a great white shark off an Australian beach has been named as a British diving instructor.
Australian media said Simon Nellist, 35, had been training for an ocean swim when he was killed by the shark at Buchan Point, Sydney, on Wednesday, MirrorOnline reports.
It is believed Mr Nellist was a British expatriate living in the Wolli Creek area of Sydney, and was engaged to be married.
Friends said he “loved the water” and was an experienced diving instructor.
Della Ross, the victim’s friend, was among those paying tribute.
She told broadcaster 7News: “Everything that is connected to Simon, to me is connected to the ocean.
“The news hit us like a truck because he is really one of the people that makes this earth better.”
It was the first fatal shark attack in Sydney since 1963.
New South Wales state Ambulance Inspector Lucky Phrachnanh said: "This person had suffered catastrophic injuries as a result of the attack and there was nothing paramedics could do when we arrived on scene."
A witness, Kris Linto, said the swimmer was in the water when the shark “came and attacked him vertically”.
“We heard a yell and then turned around, it looked like a car just landed in the water, big splash,” he told Nine News TV.
Police closed Little Bay Beach as they continued to search the area for the shark.
According to researchers with the International Shark Attack File, Australia last year led the world with three unprovoked shark-related deaths, followed by New Caledonia with two.
The United States, Brazil, New Zealand and South Africa each had a single unprovoked fatal shark attack. There were a total of 11.
