The surfer killed by a great white shark near Morro Strand state beach last Friday morning is finally identified.
The victim of the fatal shark attack is 42-year-old Thomas Butterfield of Sacramento. He was visiting his mother in Morro Bay around Christmas when he went out boogie-boarding alone on the morning of Christmas Eve.
His brother and mother went looking for him when he did not return home, and they saw all the emergency personnel on the beach. The harbor patrol closed the waters within their jurisdiction within 24 hours.
Tomas Butterfield attended high school in Ketchikan, Alaska. He was working for his dad in Sacramento at the time of his death, but visited Morro Bay to be with his mom over Christmas.
