A teenage girl in Western Australia was killed in a rare shark attack on Saturday, authorities said.
Stella Berry, 16, was jet skiing with friends on the Swan River in Perth when she jumped into the water to swim with a pod of dolphins, according to theAssociated Press,ReutersandCNN.
Tragically, the girl died at the scene,according toThe Sydney Morning Herald. It was the first fatal shark attack on the river in 100 years.
Stella Berry.
“I’ve spoken to fisheries and water police and unfortunately we have no idea what type of shark it is,” Robinson said, according to the AP.
In 2021, a bull shark attacked a local man in his 50s in the same river, CNN reported. The sharks can be occasionally aggressive, experts say.
“The Swan River estuary is good bull shark habitat and this means people can come into close contact with them,” said Andrew Chin, a senior research fellow at James Cook University, told the outlet.
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James D. Morgan/Getty
“She wanted to run a marathon; she saw herself completing school and going to explore life overseas,” Morgan added. “In her short time here at Shenton College, Stella has given embodiment to her name – for Stella, like her name, was a star. She radiated light into the lives of others and had a lasting positive impact on everyone she touched”
The girl’s parents, Matt and Sophie Berry, released a statement following her death, per theSydney Morning Herald, describing their daughter as a “caring person and a “dear friend.”
“She was a caring person and was a dear friend to many, across a variety of schools in the area,” they said, and added: “She had an infectious laugh which we couldn’t help laughing at too when we heard it.”
source: people.com
