Swimmer suffers puncture wounds in shark attack on Cape Cod

A man swimming off Cape Cod has been attacked by a shark and is being airlifted to a hospital.

The assistant harbormaster in Truro, Massachusetts, says the victim is a 61-year-old man. Gary Sharpless says the victim suffered puncture wounds to his torso and legs Wednesday afternoon.

Sharpless says the attack happened at Long Nook Beach in Truro, on the Atlantic Ocean side of the peninsula.

The man was being taken by a medical flight to a hospital for treatment. Truro fire chief Timothy Collins says the victim was “conscious and talking.”

Truro’s website says the beach has been closed until further notice. Numerous shark sightings have been reported in the area this summer.

Truro was the site of the last shark attack on Cape Cod, in July 2012, when a Colorado man suffered a bite.