Sydney shark attack: Man killed in first fatal attack for 60 years

New South Wales' government has spent millions in an effort to reduce shark attacks over the past few years

A man was killed by a shark while swimming in the ocean off a Sydney beach on Wednesday in the first deadly attack in 60 years.

Emergency services were called around 4.35pm to Buchan Point, Malabar, off Little Bay Beach in New South Wales, police said.

Witnesses told local television stations they saw the shark attack a swimmer who was wearing a wetsuit.

“Some guy was swimming and a shark came and attacked him vertically,” Kris Linto told Nine.

“We heard a yell and turned around it looked like a car had landed in the water, a big splash then the shark was chomping at the body and there was blood everywhere.”

One witness said he thought the shark was around 4.5 metres long.

“When he went down there were so many splashes,” another witness, who had been fishing on rocks nearby, told ABC.

Over the last few years the Australian government has spent millions on efforts to reduce shark attacks, a major public concern. They have put out nets along 51 beaches, as well as using drones and shark listening stations that can track white sharks by satellite and send an alert when one is sighted.

Little Bay Beach has been closed.

“Officers attached to Eastern Beaches Police Area Command, with assistance from the Marine Area Command and Surf Life Saving NSW, attended and located human remains in the water,” the police said.

The police offered no information about the identity of the swimmer.

A NSW ambulance spokeswoman said paramedics were called to Little Bay, but “unfortunately this patient had suffered catastrophic injuries and there was nothing paramedics could do.”