Shark Attack Off Reunion Island Kills 13-Year-Old Surfer
Elio Canestri was about 50 feet from the shore with seven other surfers on the western coast of the island when a shark struck him from below, launching him off his surfboard, the Mirror reports. Witnesses described the shark partially dismembering Canestri after biting him across the stomach.
“A boat was launched very quickly, and the victim was dragged out of the sea, but he died from his wounds,” the Mirror quoted a rescue services spokesperson as saying. “Those who witnessed the attack, including other children, are being treated for trauma.”
Reunion Island is an overseas department of France that lies over 500 miles east of Madagascar. Since 2007 it has seen at least 16 shark attacks, seven of which were fatal. Following a non-fatal shark attack in February, authorities banned activities in waters not under the observation by a lifeguard. Canestri was reportedly surfing in such an area Sunday morning.
Professional surfer Jeremy Flores, a native of Reunion Island, commented about Canestri’s death in an Instagram post, saying he was “was one of our best up-and-coming surfers.”
