Shark bites off surfer's hand and foot in Indian Ocean attack

PA

A surfer has had his hand and foot bitten off by a shark in the in the latest attack off the French Indian Ocean island of Reunion this year.

The man, who is in his 40s but has not been named, managed to swim to safety and get medical help.

It was the eighth shark attack in the past 20 months off the French Island; three of them have been fatal.

The last death was on 23 July when a shark bit off the leg of a 22-year-old surfer. Last September, bodyboarding champion Mathieu Schiller was attacked and killed by a shark on the Boucan Canot beach.

Friends pay tribute to Mathieu Schiller/Getty

Officials confirmed that the man had suffered "serious injuries to his right foot and hand" but said that his life was not in danger.

The attack happened in a marine nature reserve that was set up five years ago in an attempt to safeguard coral reefs.

Critics claim that the reserve has become a "larder" for bull sharks, according to a report from news service AFP.

Getty

Many locals have demanded a shark hunt, and last week, the Mayor of the Réunion town of Saint Leu, Thierry Robert, authorised shark fishing.

But the decree was withdrawn after a government promise that the state would move sharks from the area.

In a statement following Sunday's attack, he called on the government to take "the necessary measures to guarantee the safety of people using the reserve" and the surrounding area, "given that it considers itself the only competent authority" to do so.

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