Missing Washington Woman Killed By Shark While Snorkeling In Hawaii: Report

Investigators have determined that the 60-year-old Washington woman who went missing while snorkeling in Hawaii was killed by a shark, according to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR).

The Maui Police Department and DLNR said that the victim was attacked by a shark while snorkeling with her husband at Keawakapu Beach on December 8, per a Friday update (December 16).

The husband told authorities he spotted an "aggressive" shark nearly 50 yards offshore and started looking for his wife. He believed she probably dove toward the ocean floor while snorkeling, so he got out of the water to look for her on the beach. By the time the husband returned to the water, he reportedly saw “something red around the shark’s gills.”

Other beachgoers reported seeing a shark in the water, including one eyewitness who watched a large shark feasting on something in the water. They ended up calling 911, and officials put up shark warnings temporarily around the beach.

On December 9, rescue crews from several agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard, searched the sea and sky "for a missing female, possibly the victim of a shark bite,” according to a report from DLNR's Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement. Officials never found the victim's body but they did spot what they believe to be a 10 to 12-foot-long Tiger shark in the area.

DLNR doesn't release the names of people involved with shark encounters.