Man killed in shark attack in Australia

The man was in the water when the shark mauled his leg and bit off his hand. Photo / 123RF

A man has died after being attacked by a shark off the famous Cable Beach at Broome in Western Australia's north.

The 55-year-old man is understood to have been swimming alone when the shark mauled his thigh and bit off his hand just before 9am local time.

Emergency crews were called to the beach and CPR was carried out at the scene but the man, who is believed to be a Broome local, could not be saved.

Public report unknown sp. shark sighted 08:50hrs 22/11, Cable Beach, Broome , Shark incident .

— Surf Life Saving WA (@SLSWA) November 22, 2020

"There was a very, very eerie feeling there, it's not the feeling you usually have when you're standing on this beautiful beach," Broome Advertiser editor Jakeb Waddell told Perth's 6PR radio station after visiting the scene.

The shark was shot after the fatal attack but was still alive, he said.

The beach has been closed by local rangers. People are being urged to take extra care around the area.

Broome is not believed to have had a fatal shark attack since 1993.

Cable Beach, which stretches 22km and is 2000km north of Perth, is one of Western Australia's most popular tourist destinations.

The attack happened during the "off-season" and surf life savers finished their patrols at the beach last week.

Thousands of tourists descend upon the popular spot which is on the eastern Indian Ocean in the state's north.

The man was the eighth to die in a shark attack in Australia this year, the highest toll since 1929 when nine died. The introduction of shark nets at popular beaches in the 1930s led to a significant fall in fatal attacks.