Japanese surfer Tadashi Nakahara, 41, died after suffering a shark attack off the coast of New South Wales in Australia on Monday.

Tadashi Nakahara Fatal Shark Attack

Nakahara was surfing on Shelly beach Monday morning when he was attacked while reportedly sitting on his surfboard. The exact nature of his injuries is unclear, but it is known that the surfer’s legs were severely injured, and he died due to blood loss at the scene.

Nakahara had been living in Ballina for the past year and was surfing with a handful of friends when he was attacked. Two friends who were with him at the time managed to bring him to shore, and a few other surfers in the area also tried to help, but they were unable to stop the bleeding.

“Unfortunately they could not stop the bleeding and at this stage we believe he died of blood loss. He had leg injuries and they were substantial, they were injuries that led to a significant loss of blood,” said Detective Inspector Cameron Lindsay.

A local surfer, Allan Baldock, who witnessed the attack, said that, while he didn’t get a good look at the shark that killed Nakahara, he believes it must have been a big one. “It went whack and he [Nakahara] was thrown in the air…it must have been a huge, huge shark,” Baldock told reporters.

Nakahara worked for Webster Surboards, and the company is planning to honor Nakahara with a special ceremony on Saturday, Feb. 14, at the Shelley Beach Surf Club. “It would be very special if those of us in the community could join together in [honoring] Tadashi and his love of surfing. Everyone’s support has been greatly appreciated and everyone is welcome,” wrote Webster Surboards on Facebook.

Another man, Jabez Reitman, 35, suffered a shark attack just one day earlier. Reitman, who was attacked while surfing at the nearby Seven Mile Beach, is currently in stable condition at a local hospital.

The attack marks the second shark attack in two days, and authorities have closed all beaches from South Ballina to Lennox Head as a precaution. A shark expert has also been called in to determine the shark species and whether or not the two attacks were committed by the same animal. Many are speculating that the shark that killed Nakahara was a great white.

“We’ll receive advice, scientific advice, from a shark expert on what type of shark it is and whether or not they believe that shark would still be in the area, or is a species that roams,” Lindsay announced.

Film crews that were working on the beach at the time may have captured footage of the attack, but Lindsay said that all that was visible so far was just red blood in the water. However, the attack was also recorded on a live Coastalwatch surf cam. Coastalwatch is not releasing the footage, though the company did announce that it supplied the tape to local authorities.

Article by Olivia Truffaut-Wong

Olivia Truffaut-Wong was born and raised in Berkeley, California, where she developed her love of all things entertainment. After moving to New York City to earn her degree in Film Studies, she stayed on the East Coast to follow her passion and become an entertainment writer. She lives on a diet of television, movies and food.