Surfer dies in shark attack at Sydney’s Northern Beaches
An experienced surfer, Mercury Psillakis, has been named as the man killed in a horror shark attack on Sydney’s Northern Beaches on Saturday.
An experienced surfer, Mercury Psillakis, has been named as the man killed in a horror shark attack on Sydney’s Northern Beaches on Saturday.
The 57-year-old father-of-one was surfing with friends at around 9.30am when the attack occurred.
NSW Police confirmed the victim leaves behind a wife and a young daughter in the wake of the fatal attack, the day before Father’s Day.
Police believe Mr Psillakis lost both legs and one arm before his body was recovered by fellow surfers and brought to shore.
Supt Duncan said the victim’s board was broken in half by the shark during the attack – which took place 50m behind the surf break, and 100m off the beach.
Supt Duncan added: “I do understand that both him and his board disappeared under water.
“There was a couple of other surfers who managed to see him in the surf and managed to get him back.
“But unfortunately, by that time he’d lost a lot of blood.
“He suffered catastrophic injuries.”
Supt Duncan said authorities did not yet know the species of shark and had not located the man’s limbs.
Police sources said they believe the shark that set upon Mr Psillakis was about 5m long.
While the species of the shark in question is yet to be confirmed, female great white sharks are known to grow up to 5m in length.
The attack occurred between Dee Why and Long Reef, about 100m north of the surf club, with the victim being brought to the beach by members of the public.
Two sections of the man’s surfboard have been recovered from the beach and taken for expert examination.
Beaches between Manly to Narrabeen have been closed pending further advice.
A local surfer who knew the group of board riders out in the water at the time said the shark had “taken a bite out of his side”.
“They think it was a great white shark,” the local said.
“The group of surfers (who saw the attack) were not saying much, they were just trying to comprehend it.
“It makes you re-think what’s important, these guys their kids surf, their grandkids surf… you take the risk but it hits close to home.”
A helicopter was circling in the sky and two jetskis patrolled the water where the attack occurred. The Telegraph understands the shark has not been sighted.
Amid distressing scenes, the victim’s brother arrived at the beach and fell to the ground.
Family members could be seen hugging and holding each other as they sat together on the sand near where a tent was set up and closed off to the public.
A woman struggled to stand and was held up by her friends as surfers, still in their wetsuits, hugged the family.
The Telegraph spoke to one person who was surfing at Long Reef at the time of the attack, who said police ordered everyone out of the water along the stretch.
The surfer asked not to be named, given the traumatic nature of what occurred.
“He was surfing in between (Dee Why) Surf Club and the pole (in the middle of the stretch of beach connecting Dee Why and Long Reef),” the surfer said.
“Four or five surfers pulled him out of the water and it looked like a significant part of his lower half had been attacked.
“They didn’t work on him when they got to the beach.”
Police ran along the entire stretch of the beach between Dee Why and Long Reef ordering swimmers and surfers out of the water.
“There was a surf life-saving guy waving a red flag,” the surfer said. “I didn’t know what it was ... but thought I should probably go in.”
Sydney local, Sophie Lumsden, was at Dee Why at the time of the attack.
“I was sitting at the beach having a coffee and the shark alarm went off. Two minutes later, four ambulances turned up.
“There is someone on the beach but it doesn’t look like they are doing much treating. They haven’t taken them off the beach yet, and cops are surrounding them. It doesn’t look good.
“The lifeguard walked past me. I heard them say they were going to have to call the victim’s parents.”
It’s understood a junior surfing competition was under way at the time of the attack.
NSW Premier Chris Minns described the attack as an “awful tragedy” in a statement on Saturday afternoon.
“My heart goes out to the victim’s family and friends,” Mr Minns said.
“I also want to thank the first responders and community members who tried to help in such tough and confronting circumstances.
“Shark attacks are rare, but they leave a huge mark on everyone involved, particularly the close-knit surfing community.”
The last fatal attack in Sydney was in 2022, when diver Simon Nellist, of Wolli Creek, was set upon by a great white shark while in deep water off rocks in Little Bay.
Mr Nellist’s death was the first fatal shark attack in Sydney since 1963, when actress Marcia Hathaway was bitten by a bull shark while standing in shallow water in Middle Harbour.
In 2024, kayaker Lauren O’Neill was also attacked by a bull shark while swimming off a wharf in Elizabeth Bay inside the Harbour.
It comes after the issue of shark nets has been widely debated recently, with the Minns government giving three coastal councils – Waverley, Manly and The Central Coast – an option of nominating one beach each to go net-free this coming summer.
Dee Why is netted but Long Reef is not.
Originally published as Surfer dies in shark attack at Sydney’s Northern Beaches
