Three sharks are spotted in a feeding frenzy on a human body during search for diver mauled to death by a great white – but police say the remains belong to a DIFFERENT man
- Tourists watched in horror as the feeding frenzy unfolded at Twilight Beach
- The gruesome discovery was made amid the search for diver Gary Johnson
- He was taken by a great white while diving with his wife at nearby West Beach
- But the body spotted on Tuesday is believed to belong to another man
Three sharks were found feeding on a human corpse during the search for a diver who was mauled to death by a great white, but it wasn’t the body police were looking for.
Tourists watched in horror as the feeding frenzy unfolded at Twilight Beach, near Esperance in Western Australia, on Tuesday afternoon as the animals thrashed around the body in the turquoise waters.
The gruesome discovery was made amid the search for Gary Johnson, who was taken by a great white shark while diving with his wife at nearby West Beach on Sunday.
Scroll down for video
Three sharks (two pictured) were found feeding on a human corpse during the search for a diver who was mauled to death by a great white
The gruesome discovery was made amid the search for Gary Johnson, who was taken by a great white while diving with his wife (pictured together) at nearby West Beach on Sunday
But the body spotted on Tuesday is believed to belong to a 21-year-old man who vanished after being swept off the rocks at Twilight Beach on January 2, police say.
South African tourist Michael Hayes described the horror of watching the sharks launch themselves at the body.
‘The sharks took it up and then we could see it was a torso… Then we knew it was a body. They started a feeding frenzy. It was horrible,’ he told The West Australian.
Twilight Beach was closed on Tuesday afternoon after sharks were spotted feeding on a human corpse
His daughter Alison Walker, who immediately called police, said she initially thought the body was a buoy.
‘We were like ”oh a buoy would stay in one place”…it’s a body. [The sharks] were knocking it onto the rocks. It like started turning around and then we could see it was the head and the legs,’ she said.
Swimmers were evacuated from the water and the beach was closed. The body has since been recovered.
Aerial footage showed the sharks from above lurking about 150 metres off shore.
Meanwhile, the search continues for the body of Mr Johnson.
His heartbroken wife Karen Milligan revealed this week she desperately tried to fight the great white shark as it mauled her husband moments after he jumped into the water.
Aerial footage showed the sharks from above lurking about 150 metres off shore, with one stalking a boat (pictured)
Police and surf life savers cleared Twilight Beach, near Esperance on Tuesday afternoon after three sharks were spotted in a feeding frenzy on a body
‘We were both in the water when it happened, I tried to hit the tail of the shark but it did nothing,’ Ms Milligan told The Australian.
Ms Milligan said she and her husband were both wearing shark shields, which emit electrical currents intended to scare the animals away, when he died.
Fisheries Minister Peter Tinley confirmed on Tuesday Mr Johnson’s device wasn’t switched on when he was attacked.
Earlier, Ms Milligan shared a gut-wrenching tribute to ‘her rock’ just 24 hours after his death.
‘Gary was my rock. He was a kind, gentle, strong man. He only ever saw the best in people. He will be so truly missed by me, by his family and his friends and the world will be a poorer place without this most beautiful man,’ Ms Milligan said.
The couple ran the Esperance Dive Club together. It was their shared passion for the water that saw their relationship blossom.
‘He loved diving. He loved squash. He loved his work. He loved Esperance. Most of all he loved his friends and families,’ she said.
Ms Milligan said she and her husband shared a passion for diving and did so most weekends
‘He and I were at home in and on the ocean. We would go out diving in our boat whenever we could, most weekends.
Ms Milligan said she and her husband were animal lovers and were staunchly against culling.
‘We took photos, not fish. We were always aware of the risks, and often told each other that if we were attacked by a shark, that would just be unlucky,’ she said.
‘We were completely against shark culling, and I still am. We have watched with dismay the reduction of fish stocks over the years.
Mr Johnson (pictured) was a recreational diver who loved to share his passion for the ocean
The attack happened at about 1.30pm off Cull Island (pictured) in Esperance, south east of Perth, on Sunday January 5
‘We believed that if fish stocks were better protected, then the risk to people in the water would be reduced.’
Chilling details of Ms Milligan’s chilling Triple 000 call emerged earlier this week.
‘My husband’s been taken by a great white,’ she told the police operator, The Australian reported.
One of the first responders – Glen Quinlivan – was setting up his power boat for a day trip when he heard Ms Milligan’s cries for help.
‘We tried to find him. We tried to help her but to no avail,’ Mr Quinlivan told The West.
‘I really feel for her, she’s obviously witnessed something you don’t want to see.’
He said the winds were blowing towards Charley Island when they found evidence Mr Johnson had been taken.
Mr Quinlivan said they saw no sign of Mr Johnson, but found his flippers and part of his wet suit.
Karen Milligan and Gary Johnson were keen divers and water lovers before the shark attack on Sunday January 5
‘I’ve done plenty of free diving around the area. I’ve dived in that spot before… I won’t be again. You always have it in the back of your mind,’ he said.
Despite a widespread search of the area Mr Johnson was taken police still haven’t located the diver’s body.
Senior Sergeant Justin Tarasinski said everyone was trying to bring closure for the family, but even the police were going through the grieving process.
‘We’ve obviously got the blue shirts on but that doesn’t protect us from emotions,’ he said on Tuesday.
Police also pleaded for the public to help find Ms Milligan’s phone, which was left on a table at the nearby Woody Island in the days before the tragedy.
‘Karen would like it returned as it has photos of her husband on it,’ police said.
Emergency services are still desperately searching for missing diver Gary Johnson who was taken by a shark off Cull Island in WA on Sunday
Shattered wife thanks search teams looking for her husband’s body
The wife of an experienced scuba diver killed by a white shark off Western Australia’s southern coast has thanked police and volunteers with emotional hugs as the search continues for her husband’s body.
Gary Johnson was in the water with his wife Karen Milligan when he was mauled about 1pm on Sunday near Cull Island, close to West Beach in Esperance, and she put out the mayday call.
Senior Sergeant Justin Tarasinski said two remote operated vehicles were being used in the search because it was not safe to send divers into the water to scour the ocean floor.
So far, only Mr Johnson’s tank, vest and flippers have been found.
Sen Sgt Tarasinski said the grieving family was ‘going through a great degree of trauma’.
‘We’ve obviously got the blue shirts on but that doesn’t protect us from emotions,’ he told reporters on Tuesday.
Sen Sgt Tarasinski said everyone was trying to bring closure for the family.
Police also pleaded for the public to help find Ms Milligan’s phone, which was left on a table at the nearby Woody Island in the days before the tragedy.
‘Karen would like it returned as it has photos of her husband on it,’ police said.
The phone has a cover with Aboriginal art.
In a statement on Monday, Ms Milligan said Mr Johnson was at home in the ocean and they would go diving most weekends.
‘We were always aware of the risks and often told each other that if we were attacked by a shark that would just be unlucky,’ she said.
‘We were completely against shark culling and I still am.
‘We believed that if fish stocks were better protected then the risk to people in the water would be reduced.’
Ms Milligan also described her husband as her rock, adding he was a gentle and strong man.
Mr Johnson was president of the Esperance Dive Club and wrote on social media in 2017 that he wore a shark protection device because it gave him peace of mind like a car seatbelt.
Fisheries Minister Peter Tinley told reporters shark shields were useful but not fail safe, saying they worked nine out of 10 times.
The future of WA’s SMART drumline trial is due for consideration in February.
It is the second shark fatality in Esperance in less than three years, following the death of 17-year-old surfer Laeticia Brouwer at Kelp Beds in April 2017.
Source: Read Full Article