Body surfer, 26, dies after Cape Cod shark attack

A BODY surfer has died after being bitten by a shark in the waters off Cape Cod in the first fatal attack seen in the US state of Massachusetts for more than 80 years.

Arthur Medici, a 26-year-old Brazilian who was studying in America, had been seen moments earlier performing tricks in the waves at Newcomb Hollow Beach in the town of Wellfleet.

The brother of Mr Medici’s girlfriend dragged him to shore where off-duty lifeguards performed CPR and made tourniquets to stem the bleeding. He was pronounced dead in hospital having suffered multiple bites to the legs.

Joe Booth, a local fisherman who witnessed the incident on Saturday, told Cape Cod Times that he first spotted a giant eruption of water, 15ft wide.

“I saw a tail and a lot of thrashing. You could tell by the body language of the guys in the water something wasn’t right,” he added.

“I was that guy on the beach screaming, ‘Shark, shark!’ It was like right out of that movie Jaws. This has turned into Amity Island real quick out here.”

Yesterday, the beach remained closed.

“Based on the information I know, the highest probability is that it was a [great] white shark. I can’t think of any other species that would do this,” said Gregory Skomal, a shark researcher at the state’s Division of Marine Fisheries.

The last fatal shark attack in Massachusetts was in 1936, when a 16-yearold boy died. This summer there have been multiple reported sightings of great whites along the coastline.