In an horrific swimming incident, a award-winning director was attacked by a great white shark off the coast of New Zealand Wednesday (Feb. 27) and killed. Although authorities responded to the shark alert quickly, shooting at multiple targets, the director could not be saved.
According to TMZ, Adam Strange, a director known for short films and international commercials for companies like Firestone and Pepsi, was swimming at popular Murawai Beach (near Aukland) when he was suddenly pulled underwater. The shark attack drew other sharks to the area. By the time local police rushed to the scene in a boat and opened fire on the animals, it was too late. They did manage, however, to drive off the attackers.
One of the sharks -- a great white -- was killed and later washed ashore. It measured 14 feet long.
Strange's body was also recovered following the attack.
According to the New Zealand Herald, a witness saw a "huge" shark attack Strange.
Pio Mose was fishing with friends when he saw a lone man swimming toward the beach. The attack took place about 150 feet (50 meters) from where Mose was standing.
"All of a sudden there was blood everywhere," Mose recalled.
Strange wasn't killed in the initial attack. In fact, Mose said he fought off the shark and was keeping his head above water. But the shark came back.
"I yelled at him to swim to the rocks," Mose said. "There was blood everywhere. The water was red. It's pretty scary."
Mose described other sharks coming to the area and then a shark carrying Strange's body out to deeper water. He said what he kept "thinking was I wanted to jump in the water and help but I didn't want to get attacked by a shark too."
He said in the three years he's fished the area, he had never seen a shark.
Strange's death by shark attack may be the first recorded this year. The International Shark Attack File kept by the Florida Museum of Natural History logged seven deaths -- out of a total of 80 worldwide attacks -- by sharks in 2012. Nearby Australia recorded two last year.
Strange, lived in Murawai, and was the winner of the Best Short Film award at the Berlin Film Festival in 2009. He has also been a finalist at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival and the London International Awards.
He was survived by his wife, Meg, and their little girl.
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