A Hawaii surfer and lifeguard, whose skills and charisma got him cast in Hollywood movies, was killed in an apparent shark attack in Hawaii on Sunday.
Tamayo Perry, 49, who appeared in a "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie and was known for his brave and audacious surfing skills, was killed on the island of Oahu, where he was born, raised and worked for Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services on and off throughout his surfing life.
A caller told 911 dispatchers that the man’s body appeared to have suffered more than one shark bite, the Honolulu Emergency Services Department said in a statement.
Shayne Enright, spokeswoman for the emergency services department, said at a news conference Sunday that rescuers responded to Mālaekahana Beach via jet ski before 1 p.m. and brought Perry to shore, where he was pronounced dead.
"It is with profound sadness that we mourn the loss of one of our incredibly dedicated City and County of Honolulu lifeguards, who tragically lost his life today in an apparent shark attack on the North Shore," Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said in a statement.
Blangiardi said Perry "exemplified bravery, commitment and a deep sense of duty, serving our community with unwavering dedication."
"His heroic actions and tireless efforts to ensure the safety of our residents and visitors will never be forgotten," he added.
Acting Ocean Safety chief Kurt Lage also said at the news conference that Perry was known as a professional surferwith an “infectious personality”to fans of the sport around the world.
Perry was best known in the surfing world for navigating the potent waves of Pipeline, the iconic North Shore spot known for producing the churning, left-breaking barrel made famous by its appearance in the opening sequence of the original "Hawaii: Five-O" series.
In his biography on the website for Oahu Surfing Experience, the surfing and paddle boarding lessons business run by Perry and his wife, Emilia, he describes Pipeline as "the world's deadliest wave."
Perry was born and raised "just east of the North Shore," his biography says. The area of his first and last wave, Kahuku, is on the northern half of Oahu, but it's also sometimes described as being a part of the island's east side.
The location gave him easy access to Pipeline and the other world-renowned spots along the North Shore, including Waimea Bay, Rocky Point and Sunset.
In 1999, Perry won the trials section of the Pipeline Masters, opening the door to the main event and elevating him to the big stage of professional surfing. Kelly Slater, widely considered the greatest of all time, took the title that year.
The solid performance at Pipeline opened the door to other globally renowned events, including a contest at a relatively unspoiled spot that was gaining notoriety as Pipeline's dark-side doppelgänger: Tahiti's Teahupo'o.
Part of French Polynesia, it's the location for the Paris 2024 Olympics surfing competition. Teahupo'o's left-breaking meat grinder is a fault line on a shallow reef where the Pacific appears to fold in on itself. It has inspired terror, caused injury and killed surfers.
Perry made it to the final-four round of the 1999 contest, according to his bio. "The waves demanded 110% focus, commitment and respect," his biography says.
In the following years, he became a mayor of Pipeline and a "lifestyle surfer" known for taking on big waves but not necessarily for navigating the often poor surf of professional contests. Lifestyle surfers get their photos in surfing magazines, which keep sponsors happy.
"He went from a very small-town kid to a very well-known, world-class surfer," longtime friend Jason Bitzer said.
But Perry was attracted to lifeguard work at home.
Perry said that surfing Pipeline during a sizable winter swell in 2005, he was struck by a wayward board embedded in a tumbling wave. The accident required 100 stitches to his head, Bitzer said.
The experience, which Perry has described as near-death, inspired him to focus on educating beachgoers about water safety and surfing etiquette, which dictates that surfers should hold on to their boards and avoid running into anyone downstream of a wave, he said.
At one point, Perry left lifeguarding, only to return 15 years later, Bitzer said.
Bitzer, the friend, former North Shore lifeguard and onetime professional bodyboarder, cautioned that working as a lifeguard at Pipeline isn’t a typical government job. A Pipeline lifeguard rescues some of the Earth's fittest athletes.
"You don’t get to sit in that tower unless a very small group of elite humans tap you on the shoulder and tell you that you should be there," he said in an interview.
He described Perry as one of a kind in a sport surrounded by driven competitors and threatening sea.
"He’s a world-class waterman," Bitzer said. "Second to none, to be honest with you. He was a professional at the highest level in surfing. He knew the water better than 99.9% of the population."
Perry could have been an everyday lecturer — on water safety, on how to surf, on how to behave as a visitor to Hawaii. But he wasn't, Bitzer said.
"He really just kind of embodies aloha," he said, referring to Hawaii's spirit of hospitality and kindness. "If you were to see him at the tower at Pipeline, he doesn’t care who you are, he’s going to talk to you."
Bitzer found no irony in Perry's demise at his home break off Kahuku, where he has been surfing since he was 12.
"The water can be the biggest giver or the biggest taker, all depending on the day," he said. "So never take it for granted, the ocean. And all honestly, if this could happen to Tamayo, it could happen to anyone."
Perry is survived by his wife, Emilia, and his father, Bitzer said.
His acting credits include "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," as well as "Lost," the contemporary iteration of "Hawaii: Five-O" and other TV shows.
CORRECTION(June 25, 2024, 08:00 a.m. ET): A previous version of this article misspelled the name of Perry’s friend. It is Bitzer, not Blitzer.
