A professional surfer and lifeguard who appeared in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” film franchise and “Blue Crush was killed in a shark attack while surfing, authorities said.
City and County of Honolulu Ocean Safety lifeguard Tamayo Perry, 49, died in the attack near Goat Island off Oahu on Sunday, Shayne Enright of the Honolulu Emergency Services Department said in a statement.
Honolulu Ocean Safety and the city’s fire, police and emergency medical services departments responded to Mālaekahana Beach on Oahu’s North Shore just before 1 p.m. after a caller reported seeing a man who appeared to have suffered shark bites, Enright said.
Lifeguards brought Perry to shore by jet ski and paramedics assisted with the death pronouncement, Enright said.
Perry, who worked as a lifeguard on the North Shore, began his career with the Ocean Safety department in July 2016, Enright said.
Ocean Safety personnel posted shark warnings in the area following the attack, Enright said.
Pierre Tostee via Getty Images
Honolulu Ocean Safety Acting Chief Kurt Lager said Perry was “a lifeguard loved by all.”
“He’s well known on the North Shore. He’s a professional surfer known worldwide,” Lager said at a news conference. “Tamayo’s personality was infectious and as much as people loved him, he loved everyone else more.”
“Tamayo was a legendary waterman and highly respected,” Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said, calling Perry’s death “a tragic loss.”
According to IMDB, Perry had a part as a Buccaneer in 2011′s “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” and also appeared in the 2002 surf romance “Blue Crush.” He also had a role in a 2011 episode of “Hawaii Five-O.”
BRIAN BIELMANN via Getty Images
IMDB contributed to this Associated Press report.
