Surfer's leg 'completely severed' in Hawaii shark attack

WAIEHU, Hawaii (KHON) -- A 61-year-old man from Wailuku, Hawaii, is recovering in the hospital after losing his leg in a shark attack Friday morning.

Maui police and fire officials confirmed the incident happened shortly after 7 a.m. in the waters off Waiehu Beach Park, at a surf spot referred to as Sandpiles.

First responders confirmed the victim's leg was completely "severed just below the knee."

The victim, identified as Kenji Nonoka, was alert while being treated onshore and was later transported to Maui Memorial Medical Center in critical condition, according to officials.

Nonoka told officers that he was bitten by a shark and swam back to shore with the help of other surfers. A close friend of Nonoka told Nexstar's KHON he is in stable condition after undergoing surgery Friday morning.

The Department of Land and Natural Resources closed the area around 7:42 a.m. Beachgoers were advised to stay out of the water from Paukūkalo to Waihe‘e.

According to the DLNR website, this is the fifth shark attack of 2024 and the first on a neighboring island. The last attacks in Waiehu were on October 2013 and November 2012.

Experts said there is a greater chance of encountering sharks during these months.

"What happens this time of year is the big female sharks swim down from the Northwest Hawaiian islands," said Andrew Rossiter, director of the Waikiki Aquarium. "A third of the population swim down here to pup and give birth, and when they finish pupping, they hang around and feed before swimming back."

Rossiter said sharks also have poor vision, and photos of the area showed poor visibility Friday.