Man dies in shark attack in northern NSW

A surfer has died in a shark attack after fellow boardriders tried to fight off the 3m Great White.

A hunt is underway in northern NSW for a great white shark that killed a male surfer and threatened the 60-year-old “hero mate” after he attempted to fight off the animal at Kingscliff on Sunday.

Emergency services were called to Salt Beach, south of Kingscliff, shortly after 10am on Sunday following reports a man had been fatally mauled by a shark.

The Queensland man suffered a “catastrophic” bite to his left leg and died on the beach despite the brave efforts of another surfer and the friend who fought off the shark and helped the victim to shore.

“Those two males had to fight off the shark and we’ll certainly be recognising their actions at a later stage for their heroic nature,” Tweed-Byron police inspector Matt Kehoe said. “They got him on one of the boards and tried to stabilise him and take him to shore.”

“It was a catastrophic injury and he was deceased when he was brought to shore, despite the efforts of those two gentlemen. They did everything they could to save him.”

The shark believed to be involved in the attack. Picture: 7NEWS

The man died from his wounds at 10.40am.

The shark followed and circled the three men, before ramming one of their boards and then attacking.

NSW Police said they were granted permission to kill the shark, but that the animal disappeared from the area into deeper water about 1pm.

“Under the Department of Primary Industry’s shark Incident response protocols, permission may be granted to destroy the shark, if it is considered an ongoing threat to human life,” NSW Police said in a statement.

“Due to concerns that the shark had to be fought off by other board-riders, and that it remained in the vicinity for several hours after the attack, police were granted permission to destroy the shark.”

Authorities believe the victim, who had yet to be identified, was from Tugan on the Gold Coast, just over the Queensland border.

NSW Ambulance Inspector Terence Savage said the man was still able to communicate with surfers in the moments after the brutal attack but lost consciousness shortly after coming to shore.

“They did everything they could to try and save his life, but despite their best efforts, were unable to do so,” Inspector Savage said.

“When you get a call to attend a shark attack, you never really know the full extent of the damage until you get on scene. You never get used to it.”

In a statement, the NSW Department of Primary Industries said a shark biologist had assessed photographs of the bite and confirmed a great white shark was responsible.

Beaches between Kingscliff and Cabarita were cleared of swimmers and surfers and will remain closed for 24 hours.

There have now been three fatal shark attacks in Australia in 2020. The number of deaths from sharks nationally averages about one per year.