Several beaches in Sydney such as the famous Bondi and Bronte, were shut down on Thursday after a 35-year-old swimmer was mauled to death by a white shark, according to local media reports.

This is the first fatality due to a shark attack at the Australian city's beaches in nearly 60 years.

Drum lines, which are used to bait sharks, have been set up near the attack site while drones have been deployed as officials searched for the shark.

A video shared online showed a shark attacking a person on Wednesday afternoon off Little Bay beach, about 20 km south of Australia's largest city and near the entrance to Botany Bay. Police have not yet disclosed the identity of the swimmer, a Reuters report said.

The Department of Primary Industries (DPI) confirmed on Thursday that a great white shark at least three metres long was likely responsible for Wednesday afternoon’s fatal attack, according to a report in The Guardian.

“Based on footage provided by the public, including eyewitness accounts, DPI shark biologists believe that a white shark, at least three metres in length, was likely responsible,” the DPI said in a statement.

A famed Sydney ocean swim has been cancelled after a swimmer was fatally mauled by a shark off Little Bay.

The Murray Rose Malabar Magic Ocean Swim was meant to go ahead this Sunday but following the tragic incident organisers have decided to cancel it.