A swimmer killed by a white shark in Australia once lived in York, it emerged today.
It is believed 35-year-old Simon Nellist was training for a forthcoming charity swim when he was fatally attacked in front of horrified onlookers in Sydney’s Little Bay on Wednesday afternoon.
It was the first fatal shark attack in Sydney since 1963, prompted the immediate closure of more than a dozen beaches in the area until Friday.
Before moving to Australia, Mr Nellist served as an engineer in the Royal Air Force, and was based at RAF Leeming for a time.
And a friend told the MailOnline that he lived in York during this period about six years ago.
The unnamed friend, said to be a neighbour of Mr Nellist, told the paper: “He was a nice guy, a big, strapping bloke and at that time he was an engineer in the RAF.
“When I saw his name on the news I wondered whether it was the same guy. It’s unbelievable, a real tragedy for him and his family.”
Mr Nellist was originally from Penzance in Cornwall, where his family still live.
Emergency services were called to Little Bay at around 4.35pm local time on Wednesday after reports that a swimmer had been attacked by a shark.
Witness Kris Linto said the shark “came and attacked him (the victim) vertically”.
He told Nine News TV: “We heard a yell and then turned around. It looked like a car just landed in the water – big splash.”
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