Updated on: May 24, 2026 / 2:26 PM EDT
/ CBS/AP
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A man spearfishing with friends was killed by a shark on the Great Barrier Reef on Sunday, police said, in Australia's second fatal shark attack in just over a week.The 39-year-old man was with three friends diving from a boat at Kennedy Shoal off the Queensland state coast south of Cairns when he was attacked, Police Inspector Elaine Burns said."The man had been spearfishing when he was attacked and died from a critical head injury," Burns told reporters.Police said the man who pulled the victim from the water was "pretty close" to the incident and witnessed the attack, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. people were on board the boat"I would assume they would be pretty traumatized, that's quite a terrifying thing to see happen right in front of you," Burns said.The unidentified victim, a Cairns resident, was brought by boat around noon to the tourist town of Hull Heads where paramedics were waiting. He had "sustained injuries not compatible with life," an ambulance service statement said.Kennedy Shoal is a shallow coral reef popular with recreational fishers. Divers are also attracted to the Lady Bowen, a 19th century shipwreck.
