Woman killed after shark rips off her arm in US Virgin Islands

A Minnesota woman died after a shark ripped her arm off while she was swimming in the US Virgin Islands — as the good Samaritan who tried to save her revealed her last words, officials said.

Arlene Lillis, 56, was swimming off Drosch Beach on St. Croix around 4:30 p.m. Thursday when witnesses suddenly heard “ungodly screaming” coming from the water, the St. Thomas Source reported.

Utah nurse and former lifeguard Christopher Carroll, after hearing the woman in trouble, sprinted down from his second-floor hotel room and dove into the sea and swam frantically over to Lillis, who was floating about 10 yards out, surrounded by a pool of blood.

When Carroll reached her, he saw her left arm had been bitten off below the elbow, leaving the upper part of her humerus sticking out. She was still conscious then, he said.

“She was talking,” Carroll told the St. Thomas Source. “I just kept trying to reassure her.”

Carroll recalled her telling him, “I’m going to die.”

He was assisted by Ryan Connot, a vacationer from Nebraska who is trained in CPR, who also swam out to help when he heard the attack. As they approached shore, they screamed for people on the beach to call 911.

“She told us her name was Arlene,” Connot said. “That was about halfway back. I think that was the last thing she said.”

Neither of the rescuers saw the shark.

By the time they reached the beach, Lillis had lost a significant amount of blood, according to Carroll. 

She was rushed by ambulance to a local hospital, where island officials said she later died from the suspected shark attack.

A second victim was also reported, but responders were unable to confirm after scouring the area for an hour, according to the Virgin Islands Police Department.

“Our hearts are with the family and loved ones of the victim, and with everyone who witnessed this tragedy,” US Virgin Islands Governor Bryan said in a statement. 

“We have been briefed on the information known at this time, and we are grateful to the bystanders who acted immediately to render aid and to the first responders who worked urgently and bravely in an effort to save her life.”

Authorities have not yet confirmed which type of shark could have been behind the attack, but U.S. Virgin Islands are home to some of the deadliest known sharks in the sea, including tiger sharks and Caribbean reef sharks.