Officials from the V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency, Department of Planning and Natural Resources and volunteer organization St. Croix Rescue addressed circulating rumors, safety tips and the ongoing investigation into a fatal shark attack during a press conference at Government House Friday afternoon on St. Croix.
Despite quick action from bystanders, Arlene Lillis, 56, succumbed to her injuries after an attack Thursday afternoon at Dorsch Beach, near Frederiksted.
“Encounters with sharks are very common, but encounters that result in a bite are very rare,” said DPNR Fish and Wildlife Director Nicole Angeli, who recommended consulting verified sources of information about sharks like the University of Florida’s International Shark Attack File. “Even Wikipedia has great information about the occurrence and the numbers of shark fatalities and loss of limb, which you will see is very rare.”
The ISAF investigated 88 alleged encounters between humans and sharks worldwide in 2024, according to its annual report. It confirmed 47 unprovoked shark bites on humans and 24 provoked bites, which occur when a human initiates contact in some way.
“These include instances when divers are bitten after harassing or trying to touch sharks, bites on spearfishermen, bites on people attempting to feed sharks, bites occurring while unhooking or removing a shark from a fishing net and so forth,” according to the report.
The ISAF has recorded four confirmed shark attacks in the U.S. Virgin Islands since 1749.
Angeli said Friday that while shark bites are rare, sharks do gravitate toward fishing activity.
“If you’re on a shoreline, if you’re launching a boat, if you’ve decided to go down and swim around a pier and you see someone cleaning fish around that pier, there is a strong possibility that sharks may smell the fish that is being cleaned and may approach the shoreline,” she said. “So if you do see those types of cleaning practices — which are a part of our culture and a way of life — just be aware, that might not be the best place for you to enter the water or the best place for you to swim.”
VITEMA Director Daryl Jaschen said the V.I. Police Department is leading the investigation into Thursday’s incident and that information will be provided to the public as it becomes available.
“In situations like this, rumors — unverified information — spread quickly,” he said. “We will not traffic in speculation.”
St. Croix Rescue partnered with emergency responders and West End Water Sports to search the waters around Dorsch Beach — sometimes spelled Dorsche Beach — Thursday amid unconfirmed reports that a second person may have gone missing in the area. St. Croix Rescue Chief Jason Henry said searchers only found personal items, including an ID, belonging to Lillis.
“As a result, that actually brought a little solace and peace to us as responders, because there were many speculations that there may have been another individual in the water,” he said.
Nationally, an effort is underway to make shark attacks eligible for wireless emergency alert systems. Dubbed “Lulu’s Law,” the legislation was unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate in July and has been received by the House of Representatives. A press release from the office of Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama, who introduced the measure, said the law “would encourage authorized local, state, tribal, and federal government authorities to quickly deploy warnings via mobile phone alert messages to the public if a shark has attacked someone or if the conditions enhancing the possibility of a shark attack are present.”
If the bill does become law, Jaschen said Friday, “I think the Virgin Islands definitely would embrace the ability for us to get information out to the community as soon as we can — with the appropriate education.”