The victim was a 57-year-old man from Dee Why. Photo: YouTube//Screenshot
A surfer is dead after a weekend shark attack near Sydney, Australia. According to reports, the attack happened at Long Reef Beach on the morning of Saturday, September 6. The victim has been named as 57-year-old Mercury Psillakis.
“He was my Ying, I was his Yang. He was my mirror, my blood, my DNA,” wrote Psillakis’s twin brother Mike on social media. “Mercury was my life, my right hand man. Words cannot describe the bond we had together growing up.”
In a news conference to reporters, police superintendent John Duncan said that the was surfing with five or six friends 300 feet from shore and was able to warn them of the shark in the water before he was attacked.
“We had a terrible tragedy down at Dee Why beach (which neighbors Long Reef Beach) this morning,” Duncan said. “At about 10 a.m. this morning, a 57-year-old gentleman was found in the surf suffering fatal injuries from what we believe to be an attack by a shark. The gentleman had gone out at about 9:30 this morning with some of his friends… he was an experienced surfer from what we understand. Unfortunately it would appear that a large — what would appear to be — shark attacked him. As a result of that, he lost a number of limbs.”
The victim’s friends did manage to make it back to the beach unharmed, but the victim didn’t. After his body was found in the surf, attempts were made to resuscitate him, but they were unsuccessful.
“Merc spotted the shark early,” professional surfer and family friend Toby Martin told reporters, “then informed the other surfers in the water to band together and to try and get back to shore safely.”
In Australia, Father’s Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of September. The victim left behind a wife and a daughter. “Tomorrow being Father’s Day,” Duncan finished, “it’s particularly critical and particularly tragic.
Editor’s Note: this story was updated to include the victim’s name and comments from his brother.
