A 57-year-old kayak fisherman who was fishing with artificial lures was killed by a shark on Monday off the coast of Maui, Hawaii. The man was fishing from his kayak between Maui and Molokini when a shark bit his leg.

According to a statement released by the Department of Land and Natural Resources, the man’s leg was dangling in the water while he was fishing.

The bitten man’s fishing partner tied a tourniquet on his leg and was able to get help from a nearby tour boat. That boat took them to shore where the injured man was taken to the hospital. It sounds like the man may have passed relatively soon after the shark attacked him.

After this shark attack, Hawaiian officials recommended that the public stay out of the ocean 1 mile north and one mile south of Makena State Recreation Area in southwest Maui.

It is currently unknown what type of shark attacked this kayak fisherman but a Tiger Shark is suspected.

There have been 8 shark attacks off the coast of Maui this year and 13 in the state of Hawaii this year. In the past 20 years, Hawaii has average near 4 shark attacks per year.



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map showing Makena State Park near where Monday’s shark attack occurred

This latest shark attack comes only 3 days before a woman was attacked near Maui. She was injured by survived the attack.

It’s not known why Maui has experiencing more shark attacks than normal in the past year. A study is underway to search for some answers.