A 37-year-old surfer was tragically killed in a shark assault in Australia this week, authorities introduced Tuesday.

The Western Australia Police Drive stated the incident occurred at round 12:10 PM on Monday at Wharton Seashore.

Officers stated they recovered the person’s surfboard within the quick aftermath of the encounter — and it had chew marks on it. The surfer’s physique, although, has nonetheless not but been recovered.

“It’s heartbreaking, clearly,” Esperance police senior sergeant Chris Taylor informed reporters simply outdoors one of many pristine seashore’s entrances. “And the entire group of Esperance feels the ache.”

A number of retailers have ID’ed the surfer as Steven Jeffrey Payne — a Melbourne native. Taylor stated Tuesday the person’s household is “distraught and attempting to come back to phrases with what occurred yesterday.”

The world, sadly, is thought for these sorts of conditions … the Australian Broadcasting Company stated this week there have been not less than three shark-related fatalities within the area from 2017-2020 alone.

Wharton Seashore has been closed in wake of Monday’s incident — although officers stated they will rethink opening later Tuesday.