SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A shark attacked and killed a U.S. cruise ship passenger who was snorkeling in waters around the Bahamas on Tuesday, according to authorities.
The incident involved a 58-year-old woman from Pennsylvania and occurred at a popular snorkeling spot near Green Cay in the northern Bahamas, police spokeswoman Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings told The Associated Press.
“It’s unfortunate,” she said.
Skippings said the woman’s family identified it as a bull shark.
Royal Caribbean International said in a statement to the AP that the person died after arriving at a local hospital for treatment and that the company is helping their loved ones. They said the guest was participating in an independent shore excursion in Nassau and had been sailing on Harmony of the Seas, which is on a seven-night trip after departing Florida on Sunday.
The majority of shark attacks in the Caribbean have occurred in the Bahamas, with two reported in 2019, one of them fatal. That incident involved a Southern California woman who was on vacation and was attacked by three sharks near Rose Island, located just a half mile from where Tuesday’s attack occurred.
In December 2020, a fatal shark attack was reported in the French Caribbean territory of St. Martin, the first such incident in that region.
Overall, at least 32 shark attacks have been reported in the Bahamas since 1749, followed by 13 attacks in Cuba during that time period, including one in 2019, according to the Florida-based International Shark Attack File.
Michael Heithaus, a marine biologist at Florida International University in Miami, said in a phone interview that the high number of attacks in the Bahamas is likely linked to the fact that there are a lot of people in the water in that area and that it has a robust marine ecosystem.
He said the Bahamas has a variety of shark species, the majority of which do not pay attention to people, except for bull sharks and tiger sharks.
“They get to very large sizes, and they eat big prey,” Heithaus said, adding that sharks have incredible sensory systems and can be attracted to food, sounds and smells in the water.
But overall, shark attacks remain rare, he stressed.
Worldwide, there were 137 shark attacks last year, 73 of them unprovoked, according to the International Shark Attack File.
Subscribe here to receive our newsletters, access exclusive content, read our news without ads, and much more!
Trending news of PVDN
- Will there be a mega earthquake in Mexico and the United States in the next 48 hours? The earthquake alert states that both the UN and the Harvard Institute of Geophysics have warned that a mega earthquake will affect Mexico and the United States in “the next 48 hours”
- There have been 1,719 aftershocks since the September 19 earthquake that shook Puerto Vallarta On September 19, a magnitude 7.7 tremor was recorded in Jalisco at 1:05 p.m. with an epicenter in Coalcomán, Michoacán. From that day and until 6:00 p.m. on September 23, 1,719 aftershocks have occurred, the one that occurred on Thursday was the strongest with a magnitude of 6.9, and woke up the people of Puerto…
- Another earthquake shakes Puerto Vallarta, second quake this week An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.9 struck Coalcoman, Michoacán at 1:16 AM and was felt in Puerto Vallarta. The first reports indicate that the telluric movement was intensely perceived throughout the state of Michoacán, Jalisco, and Morelos. The Government of Jalisco published on social networks that “after tonight’s earthquake, no damage or injured people…
- San Pancho and Lo de Marcos, two treasures of the Riviera Nayarit Two of the quietest towns, with the most beautiful beaches of the Riviera Nayarit and perfect for finding yourself, are San Pancho and Lo de Marcos. San Pancho San Francisco, better known as San Pancho, is located 44.8 km north of Puerto Vallarta and 23 minutes from Sayulita on federal highway 200 on the Central…
- EXPLAINER: Mexican army’s role in students’ disappearance MEXICO CITY (AP) — The Mexican army’s role in the disappearance of 43 college students, its participation in covering up the facts and its alleged links to organized crime are now at the center of a case that has shaken the nation. The government’s Truth Commission declared the incident a “state crime” in August. Three…
