A man swimming off Southern California's Manhattan Beach on Saturday was reportedly attacked by a 7-foot great white shark.

Officials with the Los Angeles County Fire Department said the victim suffered moderate injuries when the shark bit him on his upper right side at approximately 9:30 a.m., The Associated Press reported.

The victim was taken to a hospital with puncture wounds, according to department spokesman Rick Flores, but was conscious and breathing on his own.

Before the attack, a person fishing off the beach's pier "hooked the shark and spent over 30 minutes trying to reel it in," during which the shark seemed to grow increasingly agitated, the AP reported Flores said.

The victim was one in a group of long-distance swimmers about 300 yards from the shore, where the attack happened, the incident report said.

The fisherman who had snagged the great white cut the line and a nearby surfer helped the injured swimmer onto his board. Los Angeles County lifeguards then helped pushed the victim ashore, where paramedics met and began treating him.

Flores described the victim as middle-aged. His name wasn't released.

Authorities said they believed the shark remained in the area for about 20 minutes after the attack before disappearing.

Local beaches remained open, though swimmers were temporarily restricted from a mile-long stretch of shore, Flores said, as lifeguard boats patrolled to make sure the water was clear.

The University of California Museum of Paleontology, in Berkeley, states that the great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) "is found in temperate waters throughout the world's oceans" and is an "important, though not common, predator" in California's coastal areas.

Great white sharks will "scavenge on the carcasses of whale sharks and on the fat-rich blubber layer of dead whales," as well as feeding on sea turtles and marine mammals, including sea otters.

The website states that the sharks are known to attack humans, but not eat them.