Shark bites off part of surfer’s leg in attack near Maui, Hawaii beach, authorities say

() – A 61-year-old surfer in Hawaii managed to start swimming toward shore after a shark bit off part of his leg near a beach in Maui, according to witnesses and authorities.

The shark attack occurred Friday around 7 a.m. local time in the waters near Waiehu Beach Park, at a surf spot called Sand Piles, Maui County officials said. in a statement.

“I heard this scream and I looked, and all of a sudden, I just saw a splash, and I don’t know what was happening,” one witness, David Basques, told KHNL affiliate.

“He swam back himself maybe more than halfway, and then I saw someone jump,” Basques told KHNL, adding that the person who jumped helped carry the man the rest of the way to shore.

Police, firefighters and medical personnel arrived shortly after and worked to stop the bleeding from the surfer’s leg, which was amputated below the knee, authorities said.

The man was conscious while being treated on shore, officials said. He was taken to a Maui hospital in critical condition. contacted the hospital for an update on his condition Saturday.

Maui Assistant Fire Chief Jeff Giesea said Maui police’s “quick action” in applying tourniquets to the man’s leg is the type of decision that often makes the difference “between life and death.” , he told KHNL.

“I would like to congratulate the patient on his strength and ability to make it to shore,” Giesea said, according to KHNL. “I mean, that’s extraordinary.” The fire chief also thanked the good Samaritans who assisted the victim.

The entrance to Waiehu Beach Park was closed after the incident and beach visitors were advised to stay out of the water in the area until further notice, according to the release.

Maui County has recorded at least 75 shark attacks unprovoked since 1828, and eight people in Hawaii were attacked by sharks last year, one fatally, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File.