A 61-year-old man who was bitten by a shark in Massachusetts has suffered puncture wounds to his torso and legs, officials say.
The unidentified victim was swimming on the Long Nook Beach in Truro, on Cape Cod, a peninsula that extends into the Atlantic Ocean, at approximately 4pm local time when the attack happened.
According to the Truro Police Department, the 61-year-old reported to be standing in shallow waters, approximately 30 yards (27 metres) offshore when he was bitten. He was transported by a medical helicopter to a hospital in Boston.
A recent nursing school graduate, who was among a group of people that rushed to the man’s aid, told USA Today there was “clearly a shark bite” on his leg.
“A bunch of people helped carry him down the beach, then we gave him towels, wrapped his leg up because there was clearly a shark bite there,” she said. “We sent him off with great people who seemed like they really knew what they were doing.”
Chris Meyers, who survived a 2012 shark attack in Truro, was swimming with his then 16-year-old son off Ballston Beach when he was bitten. He was reportedly first bitten in his left leg and suffered puncture wounds on his right leg when he kicked the shark in the snout. Mr Meyers' injuries required 47 stitches.
Seashore Chief Ranger Leslie Reynolds told The Cape Cod Times that the shark had yet to be identified but noted that encounters with white sharks “are as terrifying as they are rare”. The population of great white sharks in the region has risen due in part to the abundance of seals, which sharks feed on, the Times reported.
Truro Fire Chief Timothy Collins told The Times the man was conscious and talking as he prepared to fly in the medical helicopter. The US National Park Service rangers are investigating the incident.
