Arlene Lillis, Detroit Lakes, Minnesota woman killed in shark attack while snorkeling in St Croix, the U.S Virgin Islands. Had just arrived to the island hours earlier to escape US winter.
A Minnesota woman snorkeling in the Virgin Islands has died after she had her arm ripped off by a shark.
Arlene Lillis of Detroit Lakes, MN, was snorkeling at Dorsch Beach in St Croix on Thursday when she was attacked.
First responders with the fire department confirmed the 56-year-old grandmother lost an arm during the shark attack and later succumbed to her injuries.
Good Samaritan swims out to Minnesota woman after hearing cries for help
Christopher Carroll of Spanish Fork, Utah told The Virgin Islands Consortium he ran for help upon hearing the woman’s sudden cries for help.
‘I was in my hotel room, and I heard screaming coming from the beach, so I ran downstairs to see if someone needed medical assistance because I’m a nurse,’ Carroll said.
‘I saw there was a woman in distress in the water, and everybody was pointing at her. I had been a lifeguard when I was younger, so I swam out to try and help.
‘When I got to her, I saw a large amount of blood in the water, and then I realized that it was some kind of shark attack.’
He explained that after he helped bring Lillis back to the beach, he noticed a ‘horrible traumatic wound, her left arm was gone.’
The woman had lost her left arm from the elbow down, NBC News reported.
Fatal shark attack happened just hours after victim arriving to her winter home of St Croix
‘I knew it was a big, big shark,’ Carroll told the outlet. ‘And that was the most terrifying moments … knowing that there’s blood in the water, knowing there’s a very large shark that’s aggressive and not knowing if it’s still there. Is it coming back? Is it going to come back for her? Is it going to hit me?’
The victim was conscious as Carroll towed her back to shore and as able to tell him her name.
‘I just just kept trying to reassure that she she wasn’t alone, that you know, they were going to get her help and get her to the hospital,’ he said.
Tragically the fatal shark attack happened just hours after Arlene and her husband Rich Lillis had arrived to their winter home.
Marine units, as well as fire and emergency medical services, attended the scene, the Virgin Island Police Department said.
‘Our hearts are with the family and loved ones of the victim, and with everyone who witnessed this tragedy,’ U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. said in a statement.
Victim had been coming to St Croix for over decade
Virgin Islands Lieutenant Governor Tregenza Roach said Lillis was a ‘frequent visitor to our beautiful islands’ and neighbors confirmed she owned property on the US territory.
Her husband, Rich Lillis, described his spouse as a ‘sweet wife, mother and grandmother,’ in a Facebook post confirming her death at their ‘second home.’
‘She was so beautiful inside and out! She will be missed every second of the day. She was so smart and loving,’ he wrote.
Lillis’s friend and neighbor, Andrew Gamble, wrote on Facebook that Lillis had owned a home in St Croix for a decade and loved snorkeling.
He said she was ‘one of the most genuine, kind, and warm people you could ever meet.’
‘She truly loved this island. Snorkeling – something that brought her so much peace and joy – was the very first thing she did after arriving back on the island the night before,’ he said.
At a press conference on Friday, Virgin Island officials said they were still investigating the attack and warned people to use caution when getting in the water.
Virgin Island shark attacks are rare
‘We are surrounded by water, we do not control the sea, but we can be careful, and we can be safe if we adhere to the information provided by the department of planning and natural resources about safety and the sea,’ Roach said.
Nicole Angeli, director of the department of planning and natural resources’ division of fish and wildlife, said the attack ‘has shaken our entire community.’
She noted that while encounters with sharks are ‘common… encounters that result in a bite are very rare,’ and people should use caution because the ocean is a ‘wild environment.’
The species of shark involved in the attack has not been identified, and the investigation is ongoing. The Global Shark Attack File notes that shark attacks in the U.S. Virgin Islands are extremely rare, with only five incidents reported since 1948.
Shark bites recorded in the US Virgin Islands are very rare, with only a handful of documented cases over many decades.
In 1972 two oceanic whitetip sharks were deemed responsible for the loss of a diver in Cane Bay, and in 2020 a nurse shark injured a snorkeller’s hand at Candle Reef, both sites off St Croix, the largest of the US Virgin Islands.
