(CNN) A 23-year-old British man has died after being bitten by a sea snake on a fishing trawler off Australia.

The snake bit him while he was pulling up a net, Northern Territory police told CNN. The incident took place on Thursday in the Gulf of Carpentaria off the Northern Territory.

Medical emergency service CareFlight and other ships in the area rushed to help with medical supplies and assistance, police added. The trawler made its way to the town of Borroloola where the man was declared dead.

At least 32 species of sea snakes have been found in warmer waters off the Northern Territory and Queensland, according to the Marine Education Society of Australasia (MESA).

Most bites reportedly occur on fishing trawlers, as workers pull in nets, as was the case last week, MESA said on its website.

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