HARPSWELL, Maine (News Nation) — A great white shark attacked and killed a New York woman off the coast of Maine Monday.
A witness saw the woman swimming Monday off the shore of Bailey Island when the shark attacked.
Two kayakers helped bring her to shore where she was met by EMS responders and was pronounced dead on the scene. She was identified Tuesday as 63-year-old Julie Dimperio Holowach, of New York City.
It is the first fatal shark attack in the history of Maine, and only the second confirmed shark attack in the state in the last decade.
“Until further notice, swimmers and boaters are urged to use caution near Bailey Island and to avoid swimming near schooling fish or seals” advised the Maine Department of Marine Resources in a statement.
Scientists were able to identify the shark using a tooth fragment. Great whites aren’t common in Maine, which is in the northern tip of their range, though there have been reported sightings in recent summers.
