Shark attack in the Bahamas kills American woman

A 58-year-old Pennsylvania woman died in a shark attack in the Bahamas on Tuesday, police said.

The woman and her family, who were passengers on Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas, were visiting New Providence for the day when they booked an excursion.

The tour company took the family to Green Cay, which is about a half mile northwest of Rose Island, where a 21-year-old American woman was killed in a shark attack in 2019.

“The family was reportedly snorkelling in waters and that area is known for visitors to snorkel,” police said. “It is further reported that family members observed a bull shark attacking the female.”

Police said family members and tour company employees rescued the victim.

She was subsequently brought to mainland New Providence where she was declared dead, police reported, adding that she had sustained injuries to her upper body.

The incident comes a month after an eight-year-old British boy survived an attack by three sharks in the Bahamas last month.

Shark attacks on humans are generally rare. In 2021, there were 73 confirmed unprovoked attacks globally, of which 9 were fatal, above the annual global average of five unprovoked fatalities, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File.