A memorial placed at Bunker Bay for the dead shark-attack victim, and inset, friend James Cottrell. Credit:Ten He said there was no way of knowing if the second shark was involved in Mr Burden's attack and the time lapse made it "very, very difficult" to tell. "We're treating it as two separate things," he said. A surfer who was just metres away from Mr Burden mauled by a shark at Bunker Bay yesterday said he saw a dark shadow pass under him less than a minute before the fatal attack. The 21-year-old Sydney man was killed by the shark while bodyboarding about 50 metres from the shore at a small break known as The Boneyards about 1.30pm yesterday.

Surfers could only retrieve his upper body following the attack and beaches in the area remain closed as local authorities continue the search for the shark. Kyle Smith, 25, who was surfing nearby, said a pod of dolphins jumped erratically out of the water before the attack. Moments later, one of the swimmers in his group saw a large shadow pass under her, and believed it to be a dolphin. He said the group became spooked when no dolphins surfaced. We share the water with the man in the grey suit, so to speak.

"A young girl was swimming behind me, she yelped and said 'I think a dolphin is behind me,'" he told 6PR Radio. "We looked, and it was not a dolphin. What we saw was a bronze whaler fin. "We were pretty convinced that it was a bronze whaler. "It moved away from us to the east to a pack of about 15 guys in the water. "The shark went underneath me and to a guy on a long board."

He said a wave then broke over the group, and about 30 seconds later, silence fell over everyone in the water. "We looked over and we saw a bunch of people paddling with every bit of energy," he said. "I caught a wave in and focused my attention on people in the water. "There was a fair amount of attention on the chap [who was mauled]." The victim lost the lower half of his body, and it is believed that he died in the water.

Mr Smith said surfers have long held a great respect for sharks, and that fatal encounters were part and parcel of surfing in such waters. "We share the water with the man in the grey suit, so to speak," he said. "It's a lifestyle and we share the lifestyle with nature's finest. "You can't blame the shark." Mr Smith said the victim's friends took a big risk carrying their mate to shore, given the significant amount of blood in the water following the attack.

"I saw a horrific sight, them bringing him up on to the shore, just the sight of that was horrific," he said. "I could see enough to be able to want to focus my attention on the people on the beach. "From metres away, it was enough for me to have my hands on my face. "It won't be leaving my memory for a long time." Praise for surfers

Dunsborough police officer-in-charge Sergeant Craig Anderson praised the surfers who were in the water at the time of the attack. "You've got to take your hat off to the young fellow who was surfing with him and his mate for bringing [the victim] ashore, the nature of his injuries was significant; it's not something that even volunteer rescuers or emergency services like to see, even my own staff, so it's just something you have to deal with as a police officer and do the job you have to do," he said. The victim had been living in Wilyabrup, near Margaret River, for several years after relocating to Western Australia from Sydney about five years ago. Sergeant Anderson said the young man had a girlfriend who had recently returned overseas. The mother of the victim was this morning on her way to Western Australia from Queensland.

It was believed that the man's girlfriend, who had just left for a holiday in Vietnam had been notified of the tragedy. Friends in shock James Cottrell, a close friend of the victim, told Channel Ten he received a phone call from the man yesterday morning asking him go surfing, but Mr Cottrell turned down the offer due to less than ideal surf conditions. Mr Cottrell arrived at the beach in disbelief yesterday afternoon and could not comprehend the death of his friend. "I was given the news, and I just didn't believe it," he said.

"It's just too much." Sergeant Graham Clifford said the Department of Fisheries was scouring the water from a helicopter, while the Department of Transport was using boats to search local waters. Loading - with Aja Styles Follow WAtoday on Twitter @WAtoday