Student, 26, killed in shark attack on US beach was engaged to be married

A young engineering student has been killed in a shark attack while boogie boarding at a popular US beach.

Arthur Medici was bitten off Newcomb Hollow Beach in Massachusetts after venturing into the water on Saturday afternoon (local time).

In a tragic twist, the 26-year-old was engaged to be married and had already started planning his wedding with his partner of two years.

“[He] bought the ring. The wedding shower, everything, was ready,” Mr Medici’s aunt, Marisa, told the Boston Herald.

She added that Mr Medici’s fiancee is “heartbroken”.

Mr Medici’s friend dragged him ashore before beachgoers attempted life-saving measures including CPR and applying tourniquets.

Dramatic pictures showed a huge crowd rushing Mr Medici from the beach to a waiting ambulance.

He was rushed to hospital but later succumbed to his injuries, marking the state’s first shark attack fatality in more than 80 years.

The beach remained closed to swimming on Sunday, with flowers placed at the base of a “no swimming sign”.

A shark was spotted several kilometres south of Wellfleet on Sunday, according to the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy.

Mr Medici, who moved from Brazil two years ago, was a part-time engineering student at Bunker Hill Community College in Boston last spring, the school said in a statement Sunday.

A GoFundMe page set up by family and friends to cover funeral costs has already raised more than $18,000.

“Arthur was a very happy young man,” the fundraising page revealed.

“He was happily engaged to a smart, kind-hearted medical student with a bright future.

“He loved hiking, biking, surfing and various other sports… He was always joyful and willing to help others, even going as far as feeding the homeless.

“Our lives are never going to be the same without him. His laughter filled our home and he will be greatly missed by us all.”

There also was an outpouring of condolences on his Facebook page .

Mr Medici had worked at The Capital Grille restaurant in Burlington, just outside of Boston, and left the job more than a year ago, restaurant spokesman Rich Jeffers said.

“Just like everybody else, we’re shocked and saddened,” he said. “It’s just terrible.”