A California triathlete who vanished during a group ocean swim was killed in a horrific shark attack, authorities have confirmed months after her body washed ashore.
Erica Fox, 55, disappeared in December 2025 while swimming with 14 other people in the frigid waters off the Monterey coast.
One week later, her body was discovered roughly 25 miles away near Davenport Beach in Santa Cruz County. She was still partially dressed in her black wetsuit.
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office determined that Fox died from “sharp and blunt force injuries and submersion in water due to a shark attack,” according to a newly released report obtained by the Monterey Herald.
Investigators said Fox’s swimsuit and wetsuit were ripped around the areas where she was injured. A semicircle of tooth wounds reportedly extended from her abdomen to her knees.
The shark appeared to have delivered a single catastrophic bite across her torso and legs, fracturing her pelvis and severing a major artery, the report said.
Marine biology professor Chris Lowe, who works with the Shark Lab at California State University Long Beach, believes the predator may have mistaken Fox for a seal or sea lion.
“The only explanation we can come up with in cases like this is that the shark made a mistake,” Lowe said. “It mistook a person for a seal or a sea lion.”
“This was a big shark,” he added. “I think she was probably knocked unconscious immediately. It was a horrible trauma.”
Fox had been taking part in a weekly swim with the Kelp Krawlers, a Pacific Grove swimming club she co-founded with her husband, Jean-Francis Vanreusel.
Members of the group reportedly heard or saw a large splash in the water and feared that a shark had attacked. The other swimmers managed to return safely to shore, but Fox never came back.
The autopsy findings appear to support witness accounts reported at the time. According to the Coast Guard, witnesses claimed they saw a shark carrying what appeared to be a human body in its jaws before disappearing beneath the surface.
Fox was an experienced athlete and had competed in triathlons. Photos shared online showed her swimming with the Kelp Krawlers and running toward race finish lines to receive medals.
In one eerie social media post shared before her death, Fox posted an image of a diver swimming beside a great white shark.
“This is the most DANGEROUS ANIMAL in the world, and by his side, a SHARK swims peacefully,” the caption read.
The Kelp Krawlers’ Facebook page has since been marked as closed. The page still contains photos of Fox and other members posing in wetsuits beside the ocean, along with posts mourning her death.
Some commenters appeared to agree with Lowe’s theory that the shark may not have realized Fox was human.
“So sad about Erica Fox,” one person wrote. “Has anyone ever investigated developing a wetsuit that looks less like the black outline of prey?”
The commenter suggested using an orca-style pattern or possibly creating wetsuits carrying an orca scent.
Another person pointed to research by scientists at Macquarie University suggesting that horizontal strips of steady LED lights placed beneath objects could potentially discourage great white sharks from attacking.
Fox’s death marks the third reported shark attack at Lover’s Point since June 2022.
That year, fellow Kelp Krawler swimmer Steve Bruemmer, then 62, was bitten on the leg. He survived after nearby paddleboarders rushed to his rescue, according to Monterey County Now.
Fox’s death has left the tight-knit ocean swimming community devastated while raising new concerns about shark encounters along the Monterey coastline.
