Tourist loses arm in shark attack in Hawaii

MAUI, Hawaii -- A 20-year-old female tourist from Germany was in critical condition Thurday, after a shark severed her right arm while she snorkeled in Hawaii on Wednesday, authorities said.

Mauinow.com said he attack was reported at around 4:41 p.m. while the woman was snorkeling about 50 yards from shore on White Rock beach in Makena. County officials say the conditions were choppy with limited visibility.

“We heard screaming from the water and it was this unbelievable scream like I’ve never heard before,”  Andree Conley-Kapoi, a resident of Upcountry, Maui ,who was working in the area, told Mauinow.com.

“The only time anybody would scream like that is if they are being attacked by a shark,” said Conley-Kapoi, who observed the commotion taking place and called 911.

According to Conley-Kapoi, she could see one person attempting to swim another person in to shore. A separate person grabbed a kayak and went out to assist as well, she said.