A 65-year-old woman has been killed in a horrifying shark attack off South Africa’s southeastern coast, prompting the closure of two beaches. The woman died while swimming off Orient Beach in KuGompo city, formerly East London, on Tuesday morning. She was swimming near the beach when she signalled that she was in trouble, prompting members of an open-water swimming group to respond and bring her back to shore. A witness told South African public broadcaster SABC: “We all realised she’d been bitten by a shark, and she was in a very bad way. The bites were very severe, but there were only two, one on her thigh and one on her upper arm.”
A medic who was part of the swimming group attempted to save her, but she was declared dead at the scene. Police officers were called to the beach at around 7am, where they found the woman’s body with open wounds. Eastern Cape police spokesperson Col. Siphokazi Mawisa told The Associated Press that an inquest has since been opened into her death. The species of shark involved in the attack has not been identified.
The Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality confirmed the fatal attack, with spokesman Luzuko Buku saying in a statement: “The Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality is deeply saddened to confirm that a fatal shark attack occurred at the Orient Beach this morning, resulting in the tragic loss of a swimmer.”