An American boy was raced to hospital in the Bahamas after being attacked by a shark at a popular tourist beach. 

The boy, aged 12, was attacked at the Exuma Cays area around 3:30pm on Tuesday in front of his horrified family, Royal Bahamas Police said. 

The extent of the boy’s injuries are not clear, but reports said he was listed in stable condition when he was transported to hospital in New Providence. 

The Exuma Cays are a popular coastline of beaches known for swimming and scuba diving among tourists. 

The area has also seen a number of shark attacks in recent years, including in 2018 when American boy Asher Jones was attacked by a nurse shark on-camera. 

An American boy was raced to hospital in the Bahamas after being attacked by a shark at the Exuma Cays area, a popular tourist beach (seen in a stock image)