A French tourist has had her hands and chest bitten by a shark leaving her seriously injured in a rare attack in the Pacific islands of Polynesia.

The 35-year-old woman was swimming off the island of Moorea during a whale-watching trip on Monday in the French overseas territory when the oceanic whitetip shark tore into her chest and arms. The woman lost both of her hands in the incident, emergency services said Tuesday. One of her breasts had also been ripped from her body

.The attack happened in front of her family including her 6-year-old son. The victim was quickly brought back onto dry ground close to the InterContinental Hotel in Moorea by pontoon, where she was attended to by paramedics.

One witness told the local radio station:’I saw this woman who had no arms, the arm on the left side was hanging down and her hand was hanging. Her rib on her right-hand side was also swollen. It was a huge panic for everyone.’