Brit, 64, mauled in Caribbean shark attack has fingers re-attached in life-saving op after $10k bounty issued for beast

A BRIT tourist mauled by a 10ft shark off a Caribbean beach had to have his fingers re-attached in life-saving surgery overnight.

Peter Smith, 64, was left fighting for his life after he was attacked by a bull shark while swimming off Tobago.

The victim of the shark attack, Peter Smith, 64, is pictured for the first time, with wife Joanna

Brit tourist Peter Smith is rushed from the hotel to hospital following the attackCredit: X

He reportedly suffered a severed thigh and arm, and a laceration to his stomachCredit: Facebook

A $10,000 reward was offered to any fisherman who managed to catch the sharkCredit: Tobago House of Assembly

Video is circulating online of a shark believed to be the one that attacked Peter SmithCredit: X/@Newsday_TT

Fishermen were promised a $10,000 reward if they were able to capture the bull shark that savaged the Brit.

Peter had ventured into the water near the Caribbean Island’s Starfish Hotel during his last swim of the holiday when he was attacked just 10 metres from the shore just after 9am on Friday.

The tourist's arm was reportedly badly damaged from the elbow down, as was his left thigh.

There were fears that both his arm and his leg had been "severed".

The Brit was also said to have suffered a laceration to his stomach.

Peter, of Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, underwent life-saving surgery at the Scarborough General Hospital following the attack and was set to be flown to Trinidad as soon as possible, hospital officials told local media.

It was revealed on Friday evening that his fingers had been "re-attached" but "extensive work" was still needed on one of his legs.

Tobago's chief secretary Farley Augustine said the tourist was "doing well" and was being kept under sedation in the intensive care unit at Scarborough General Hospital.

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He said Peter had been holidaying on the island with his wife and his friends and was due to fly home the same day he was attacked.

Mr Augustine explained: "Some re-attachments were done, of fingers for example, and hopefully that will save those fingers.

"We know that there’s significant wounds on one of his legs that cannot be completely closed, but he will require extensive work.

"The task at this time for our health professionals is really to stabilise and ensure that we can save life and limb as much as possible."

There was still "extensive work" to be completed, he said, but "we expect him to recover from the incident".

Mr Augustine continued: "This was his last swim before departing Tobago to the United Kingdom and it’s regrettable that this happened on his very last day vacationing on island."

Witnesses said they believed the bull shark was up to 10 feet long and two feet wide.

The Tobago House of Assembly announced last night that a $10,000 reward would be given to any registered fisherman who managed to capture the shark.

Local media reported on Saturday that the offer had been retracted following some backlash.

One person wrote on Facebook of the bounty offer, before it was retracted: "This is the most asinine thing I have ever seen.

"There will be nothing but only senseless killing of sharks due to this.

"You cannot employ this barbarous method to deal with this situation."

Someone else said: "Seriously…. Sharks are endangered species. This isn’t the solution."

Another person wrote: "What if there are more sharks in the area and a few fishermen make catches.

"They can't tell which specific shark did it."

What makes bull sharks so dangerous?

BULL sharks are the most dangerous sharks in the world, according to experts.

The shark, also known as the Zambezi shark in Africa and Lake Nicaragua shark in Nicaragua, is a species found across the world in warm, shallow ocean waters.

Bull sharks have also been known to swim up into freshwater rivers.

They are dangerous because they are aggressive and because they tend to hunt in waters where people often swim, both during the day and at night.

Humans are not the shark's preferred prey - their diet consists mainly of fish - but they will eat almost anything, including dolphins, sea turtles, and even other sharks.

BULL SHARK KEY INFO

Scientific name: Carcharhinus leucas
Type: Fish
Diet: Carnivore
Average lifespan in the wild: 16 years
Size: Seven to 11.5ft
Weight: 200 to 500lbs

Ten beaches and a marine park were closed by the government of Trinidad and Tobago following the bloody attack at Turtle Beach, along Great Courland Bay, on Friday.

Witnesses said Peter was only in waist-deep water when he was attacked, and that people nearby tried to chase off the predator.

Stephanie Wright, from West Sussex, said: "We saw some people on the beach, and I originally thought the gentleman had had a cardiac arrest, and I thought they were helping him.

"And then I saw someone running down with a towel, and then I saw a dorsal fin come out of the water and thought, 'Oh my God, it's a shark.'

"As it turned, I saw the tail come out as well, as it swam off."

The government said shark sightings were reported in the Grafton area and in the Buccoo Reef Marine Park.

Closing ten beaches - and all coastal areas between the beaches - will allow authorities to investigate the attack and "neutralise" the shark threat if possible, according to officials.

The Tobago House of Assembly said: "The closure of these beaches is in keeping with efforts to ensure the safety of all visitors and the Tobago Emergency Management Agency is actively using unmanned aerial vehicles scans along the coastlines of these areas."

There were 69 unprovoked shark attacks and 22 provoked bites across the world last year, along with 14 fatalities, according to the Florida-based International Shark Attack File.

HORROR ATTACKS

The brutal attack off Tobago followed another incident where a teenage boy was mauled by a great white shark while fishing.

The teen was bitten on the leg off a beach in South Australia - and subsequently rushed to hospital - having reeled the beast in from a small fishing boat.

Last Saturday, another man was rushed to hospital in Australia after falling victim to a shark attack.

The beachgoer was bitten at the Bombie Surfing Spot near Exmouth in Western Australia about midday.

Cops said paramedics only learned of the horror attack when the man turned up at a hospital for treatment.

He was immediately admitted and later declared to be in a stable condition.