Daughter tells police about the moment she saw her father killed by a shark

A woman has told Hobart police about the moment she watched her father killed by a shark as the pair were diving for scallops off the Tasmanian coast.

The pair, both registered scallop divers, were in the water at Lachlan Point off Maria Island around 7am when the woman returned to their dinghy.

When her father, aged in his 40s, did not surface, she re-entered the water and witnessed him being fatally mauled by a large shark.

"His daughter became worried and went down and checked on her father, saw a very large shark, she saw her father being attacked by the shark,” Inspector David Wiss told reporters.

She then resurfaced and let off a flare to get the attention of other boats in the area.

The woman and the man’s wife remain at their home in Kingston tonight.

A local dive tour operator, Bruce Priestley, said sharks are attracted to the area by a seal colony at Ile Des Phoques, but are not common.

"I've been here 14 years, in the water nearly every day, and I've only seen two sharks with teeth in that time," Mr Priestley told AAP.

Police advised boat owners and divers to stay out of the water.

Tasmanian Scallop Association president John Hammond said the area was known for its scallops.

"It was prolific, producing territory. It is an absolute tragedy," he told The Mercury.

RECENT SHARK ATTACKS IN AUSTRALIA

JULY 25, 2015

• Man is killed while reportedly diving for scallops off Tasmania's east coast. It is believed the man was diving with his daughter, who saw the attack and surfaced to fire a distress flare.

JULY 2, 2015

• Matthew Lee, 32, is mauled by a suspected great white shark at Lighthouse Beach, near Ballina, in northern NSW. He suffers critical leg injuries but survives.

JANUARY 16, 2015

• Sam Smith, 17, is bitten on the hand by a 1.5m shark at Mollymook Beach, about three and a half hours south of Sydney.

FEBRUARY 9, 2015

• Japanese national Tadashi Nakahara, 41, is killed at Shelly Beach, near Ballina, in northern NSW.

DECEMBER 29, 2014

• Jay Muscat, 17, is killed by a great white while spearfishing at Cheynes Beach near Albany, WA.

DECEMBER 15, 2014

• Daniel Smith, 18, of Mossman, is killed while fishing at Rudder Reef, off the coast of Port Douglas.

OCTOBER 2, 2014

• Sean Pollard, 23, loses both hands after a shark attack at Wylie Bay Beach, near Esperance, WA.