California Woman Killed in Bahamas Shark Attack

21-year-old Jordan Lindsey was killed in a shark attack in the Bahamas on July 26, 2019. GoFundMe

A California woman has died in the Bahamas following an attack by multiple sharks, reports said.

Jordan Lindsey, 21, of Torrance was snorkeling with her family near Rose Island on June 26 when she was bitten by what local police cited by ABC News said were three sharks.

Police cited by ABC said Lindsey’s parents spotted the sharks approaching and tried to warn her but it was too late.

Deputy Commissioner Paul Rolle told CNN affiliate WPLG that Lindsey suffered multiple bites to her left arm, both legs and buttocks, and her right arm was torn off.

The Bahamas Press reported the young woman was transported to a hospital in New Providence and pronounced dead.

Following an autopsy, Lindsey’s body will be transported to California by the U.S. Embassy, Rolle told WPLG.

‘She Was So Caring’

Lindsey’s father told NBC News: “We already miss her so much… She was so caring. She loved all animals. It’s ironic she would die getting attacked by a shark.”

Her younger sister, Madison Lindsey, has started a GoFundMe page to help the family with the costs of transporting her body back to California and with the funeral.

“Jordan Lindsey was a beloved daughter, sister, girlfriend, and friend,” the GoFundMe page says. “On June 26, 2019 Jordan was tragically killed from a shark attack in the Bahamas.”

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“Jordan had the most beautiful, gentle soul and she will be missed deeply.”

A Bahamas government ministry issued a statement of condolence.

“The Ministry of Tourism, on behalf of the Government and the people of the Bahamas expresses its condolences and deepest sympathies to the family and loved ones of the victim of Wednesday’s shark attack off Rose Island, near New Providence,” the Ministry of Tourism and Aviation of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas said in a statement cited by Bahamas Press.

Fox5 reported the Bahamas Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources issued a public advisory in the wake of the fatal shark attack.

An assessment will be carried out to check if the water is safe.

A Danger or Endangered?

Sharks in their interactions with humans have acquired a fearsome reputation that, according to National Geographic, is not justified.

“The United States averages just 16 shark attacks each year and slightly less than one shark-attack fatality every two years,” writes National Geographic’s Brian Handwerk. “Meanwhile, in the coastal U.S. states alone, lightning strikes and kills more than 41 people each year.”

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Data from the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File (ISAF), a database of all known shark attacks, shows that humans pose a greater threat to sharks than vice versa.

“On average, there are only six fatalities attributable to unprovoked attacks by sharks worldwide, each year. By contrast, fisheries kill about 100 million sharks and rays annually.”

A comparison of dog attack fatalities (364) versus shark attack fatalities (11) in the United States for the years 2001-2010 shows that canines pose a considerably higher risk to humans than the much-maligned sharks.