Officials in northern California say 26-year-old man was killed in a shark attack this past weekend while surfing near Monterey Bay.
The Santa Cruz County coroner's office identified the victim of Saturday's attack as Ben Kelly.
In a statement, the California State Parks Department said Kelly was surfing near Manresa State Beach on the northern end of Monterey Bay Saturday afternoon when he was attacked by a shark of unknown species.
Witnesses say the attack occurred about 90 meters from shore. Officials told local media that one of the witnesses flagged down a lifeguard who was nearby. Kelly was pronounced dead at the scene.
Kelly was known in the area as avid surfer who had been making his own surfboards since he was a young man.
At the time, the beach was closed to visitors to maintain physical distancing norms during the coronavirus crisis, but swimming and surfing was allowed in the water. As a safety precaution, authorities closed the water 1.6 kilometers north and south of the attack until Thursday.
Fatal shark attacks are rare along the U.S. coasts, with an average of one person killed every two years.
