(CNN) A 37-year-old man was rescued by a US Coast Guard helicopter after he was bitten by a shark while surfing near Santa Rosa Island in California Saturday.

"This was the best possible outcome to a truly terrifying situation," said Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Benjamin McIntyre-Coble

The victim's friend notified the Coast Guard of the attack and put a tourniquet on the victim's leg to "prevent further blood loss," according to the Coast Guard.

"We are so grateful to the good Samaritan who jumped in to save this guy," Petty Officer Mark Barney told CNN. "It's not like the New Jersey shore where out there where you might have 100 people the beach. Santa Rosa Island is remote especially out there on the northwest side where he (the victim) was surfing.

"This could have gone in a different direction, but thankfully the good Samaritan was out there. They applied the tourniquet, which is crucial. You have to get a grip on the blood flow, and that good Samaritan had their head in the right place and did everything properly."

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