Victim of shark attack in Maui’s Honolua Bay dies from his injuries
COURTESY HAWAII DLNR
A 56-year-old man from Lahaina died Wednesday after being bit by a shark Tuesday morning while surfing in Honolua Bay on Maui. The man was paddling out from the old ramp in the bay, when he was attacked. This photo from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources shows the man’s shark-bitten surf board.
The 56-year-old Lahaina man who was bitten by a shark while surfing at Honolua Bay died of his injuries today, according to a spokeswoman for the Maui Memorial Medical Center.
The surfer was attacked while paddling out from the old ramp in the bay Tuesday morning, and was hospitalized at the medical center where he died earlier today, spokeswoman Tracy Dallarda confirmed.
No other details of his death were revealed.
The shark attack occurred before the start of the second day of the Women’s Maui Pro surf contest at the bay. The organizers of the competition suspended the competition, and shark warning signs were put up on the beach.
The victim was a recreational surfer, according to a news release from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement.
The man’s death is the first from a shark attack in Hawaii waters since May 2019, according to an list maintained by the DLNR. The 2019 attack was near Honokowai Point, just a few miles from Honolua Bay.
The last shark incident in Hawaii was on Sept. 6 at Kapuniau Point on Hawaii island, according to the list. The victim was snorkeling about 100 yards from shore and suffered lacerations to the ankle.
