Antonio Roseto Degli Abruzzi, a 56-year-old Italian tourist, was reportedly killed by a shark off the shore of San Andres Island in Colombia on Friday.
Snorkeling in a popular spot known as La Piscinita, he was bitten in the leg several times by a tiger shark, according to local media, CBS News reported. After being taken to Clarence Lynd Newball Hospital, Abruzzi died having lost too much blood to survive, according to the outlet.
While sharks are not a common sight in this area, making it previously inviting for tourists, there has been an uptick in sightings recently, according to the Archiepelago Press. “In the last two weeks, sharks have appeared in shallow waters north and south of San Andrés,” the Archiepelago Press reportedly said on Twitter. In the same tweet, the Archipielago Press included a video of sharks swimming in that location.
Estos dos tiburones tigrillos son los dos escualos que esta tarde atacaron a un turista extranjero en el sector de La Piscinita, causándole la muerte. En las dos últimas semanas han aparecido tiburones en aguas poco profundas al norte y sur de San Andrés pic.twitter.com/NrrdHO74Qb
— The Archipielago Press (@thearchipielago) March 18, 2022
The International Shark Attack File shows Colombia has only reported one shark attack since 1580. Local diving instructor Mirla Zambrano reportedly said, “We are all very surprised. It’s the first time a shark has attacked a tourist in San Andres.”
“People are very worried about what’s happened,” Rodrigo Lopez, a marine biologist in the area, reportedly said. Lopez and other witnesses further described the circumstances of the attack, which saw Abruzzi swimming alone, according to The Daily Mirror. (RELATED: Shark Attacks Rise After 3 Years Of Decline)
While Colombia may not be known for shark attacks, the tiger shark is, having accounted for the second-highest amount of unprovoked fatal attacks by species since 1580, recorded by the International Shark Attack File.