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Woman loses arm in shark attack off Maui

German tourist was snorkelling when she was attacked

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Oceanic whitetip shark. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Officials reopened a Maui beach on Thursday, a day after a shark bit off the right arm of a German visitor about 46 metres offshore.

About three kilometres of beach in the resort community of Makena reopened at noon after lifeguards and firefighters surveying the ocean found no sign of sharks in the area, Maui County officials said.

The woman, who was about 20 years old, was snorkelling at Palauea Beach when the attack occurred shortly before 5pm on Wednesday. The water was choppy and visibility was limited at the time.

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Bystanders on shore heard the woman scream, put her on a kayak and brought her to land, said Lee Mainaga, fire services chief at the Maui Fire Department. Her right arm was severed below the shoulder, he said. The limb wasn’t recovered.

The woman was taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center in critical condition. A spokeswoman there said Thursday that the hospital had no further information to release.

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It wasn’t clear what type of shark bit the woman. Witnesses interviewed didn’t see the animal, said Department of Land and Natural Resources spokeswoman Deborah Ward.

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