Reunion Shark Attack

According to a report on French website TF1 News, the shark hit the 32-year-old surfer at 6pm at Three Rocks, Saint-Gilles, on the west side of this Indian Ocean island that lies east of Madagascar.

Surfers in the water said they heard him scream for help as the shark tore his leg off at the knee. They said he conscious when emergency personnel evacuated him to to Gabriel Martin Hospital in Saint Paul. Witnesses said the man, who has not been identified, had arrived with his wife on Reunion that morning.

Hospital officials said his life was not in danger, but he would remain hospitalised for ten days.

Tézier Remy, a local adventure documentary film maker famous for his award winning film Au-Dela Des Cimes (Beyond the Peaks - see attached Youtube trailer), saw the attack, saying that the "water was clear, the wave was beautiful. Sharks are unpredictable and can attack anywhere," he said. It was the first time a shark attack had been recorded at Saint Gilles, he added.

Thirty shark attacks have been recorded around the island since 1972, of which 17 were fatal. The last was in March 2010 at St Benedict. The victim, also a surfer, survived without a scratch, said the TF1 News report.

Au-Dela Des Cimes

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