A 19-year-old New Zealand woman dies after an alleged shark attack

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According to local police, the woman was injured on Thursday afternoon in the waters of Waihī beach and died shortly afterwards.

Kaelah Marlow, 19, died in an alleged shark attack on Thursday, according to New Zealand police.

On Friday, New Zealand police identified the woman as 19-year-old Kaelah Marlow from the city of Hamilton, about 391 kilometers (243 miles) from the capital Wellington.

“Initial indications suggest she may have been injured by a shark,” New Zealand police said in a press release on Thursday.

Police said the coroner will eventually release the cause of Marlow’s death.

“We appreciate that his death was extremely traumatic for those who went to Waihī beach yesterday and we offer victim support services to anyone who requires it,” police added.

People walk near a beach after an alleged shark attack in Bowentown, near Waihī, New Zealand, on January 8, 2021.
Shark attacks in New Zealand are rare. The last deadly shark attack occurred in 2013, when a 40-year-old swimmer died off the coast, near popular Muriwai Beach, west of Auckland.

According to the New Zealand police website, a non-fatal shark attack last occurred in 2018. A man was attacked by a shark and taken to a hospital for treatment.

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