Shark Attack at Eastern Cape Beach in South Africa: 65-Year-Old Swimmer Dies, Two Beaches Closed
KuGompo City — A 65-year-old woman died on the morning of October 20 after a shark attacked her while she was swimming with a group at Orient Beach in KuGompo City, in South Africa's Eastern Cape province, public broadcaster SABC reported. The attack occurred shortly after 8 a.m.
A witness told SABC the woman indicated she was in trouble before the group realized she had been bitten; there were two severe bites, one on her thigh and one on her upper arm. She was brought back to shore, where she was declared dead on the beach. Eastern Cape police said officers who attended the scene found her body with open wounds and opened an inquest; the species of shark involved was not immediately known.
The Buffalo City Municipality announced that Orient Beach and nearby Eastern Beach had been closed until further notice and urged the public to stay out of the water. In a social media post, the municipality said a shark attack at Orient Beach had resulted in a tragic incident.
South Africa's long coastline is home to many shark species and is popularly known for great white sharks, which draw tourists for cage diving and shark-watching. Fatal attacks remain uncommon worldwide: the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File recorded 65 unprovoked shark bites globally in 2025, including nine fatalities, one of them in South Africa.
Source: Compiled from Reuters reporting of October 20, 2026, and SABC.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 资料图：水中的鲨鱼（与本次事件无关），Sharkcrew 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0（Wikimedia Commons）
