{"id":421040,"date":"2026-08-01T19:02:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T19:02:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/421040\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T19:02:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T19:02:14","slug":"california-triathlete-erica-fox-killed-in-monterey-shark-attack-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/421040\/","title":{"rendered":"California triathlete Erica Fox killed in Monterey shark attack: report"},"content":{"rendered":"

A California triathlete whose body washed ashore a week after she vanished during a group ocean swim<\/a> off the Monterey coast was killed in a gruesome shark attack<\/a>, according to a newly released report.<\/p>\n

Erica Fox, 55, disappeared in December 2025 while swimming with 14 others in the frigid waters off Monterey. <\/p>\n

A week later, her body was discovered about 25 miles away near Davenport Beach in Santa Cruz County, still partially dressed in her black wetsuit, the report said.<\/p>\n

The California triathlete was killed by a gruesome fatal shark attack. Facebook\/KelpKrawlers<\/p>\n

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff-Coroner\u2019s office revealed this week that Fox was killed by \u201csharp and blunt force injuries and submersion in water due to a shark attack,\u201d the Monterey Herald reported<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Authorities said that Fox\u2019s swimsuit and wetsuit were torn where her injuries occurred, with a \u201csemi-circle of tooth wounds\u201d extending from her abdomen to her knees.<\/p>\n

The report said that the single bite from her torso to her legs from the shark fractured her pelvis and \u201csevered a major artery.\u201d<\/p>\n

Erica Fox\u2019s corpse was found still clad in part of her black wetsuit south of Davenport Beach in Santa Cruz. Monterey County Sheriff’s Office<\/p>\n

Chris Lowe, a professor of marine biology with the Shark Lab at California State University Long Beach, said he suspects the shark thought Fox was a seal or sea lion.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only explanation we can come up with in cases like this is that the shark made a mistake,\u201d Lowe said. \u201cIt mistook a person for a seal or a sea lion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a big shark. I think she was probably knocked unconscious immediately. It was a horrible trauma.\u201d<\/p>\n

The autopsy appears to confirm witness reports at the time of seeing a shark with a human body in its jaws before it submerged.<\/p>\n

Fox was participating in a weekly swim with a club she co-founded with her husband Jean-Francis Vanreusel \u2014 called the Kelp Krawlers in Pacific Grove \u2014 when the group feared a \u201clarge splash\u201d was an attacking shark<\/a>, KSBW reported.<\/a><\/p>\n

While the other swimmers all made it back to shore, Fox remained missing.<\/p>\n

The autopsy appears to confirm witness reports at the time of seeing a shark with a human body in its jaws before it submerged, per the Coast Guard.<\/p>\n

Authorities said that Fox\u2019s swimsuit and wetsuit were torn where her injuries occurred, with a \u201csemi-circle of tooth wounds\u201d extending from her abdomen to her knees. Facebook\/KelpKrawlers<\/p>\n

A post Fox once shared on social media showed a picture of a diver swimming alongside a great white shark.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the most DANGEROUS ANIMAL in the world, and by his side, a SHARK swims peacefully,\u201d the post was captioned.<\/p>\n

The Facebook page<\/a> for the Kelp Crawlers includes photos of Fox and the swimmers in the group with a message at the top that said it\u2019s closed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also posts talking about Fox\u2019s tragedy, appearing to back up Lowe\u2019s theory that the shark didn\u2019t know she was a human. KSBW<\/p>\n

Chris Lowe, a professor of marine biology with the Shark Lab at California State University Long Beach, said he suspects the shark thought Fox was a seal or sea lion.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also comments talking about Fox\u2019s tragedy, appearing to back up Lowe\u2019s theory that the shark didn\u2019t know she was a human.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo Sad About Erica Fox. Has anyone ever investigated developing a wet suit that looks less like, black outline of prey, and maybe like some other thing?\u201d one person wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe a Orcas pattern or have the scent of Orcas come for the wet suit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cScientists at Macquarie University recently found that horizontal stripes of steady LED lights placed on the underside of objects can effectively deter great white shark attacks,\u201d another added, noting a report in The LighthouseTechnology Networks.<\/p>\n

Fox\u2019s death is now the third shark attack at Lover\u2019s Point since June 2022, when fellow Kelp Krawler member, Steve Bruemmer, then 62, was bitten on the leg and only survived after he was rescued by nearby paddleboarders, according to Monterey County Now.<\/a><\/p>\n

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