roseisland

The Pennsylvania woman killed in the Bahamas by a bull shark is Caroline DiPlacido, a faculty member of Gannon University, a private Catholic university in Erie.

DiPlacido, 58, was a project coordinator in government relations at the university where she was described as “a powerful presence of kindness and friendship to colleagues, students, and the wider community.”

She graduated from Gannon in 1986 and was hired in 2009 as a secretary in marketing and communication, and was responsible for enhancing the university’s relationship with the community.

DiPlacido was vacationing with her family in the Bahamas onboard the Royal Caribbean Harmony of the Seas Cruise when they booked an independent excursion off Rose Island, a popular snorkeling site for tourists.

While snorkeling, a bull shark attacked and she was bitten in the upper extremities of the body. She was rushed ashore by her family and the tour operator, but later died of her injuries.

Campus Chaplain Rev Michael Kesicki said, “The news is devastating and she will be missed.

“Let us remember Caroline with affection and love. We pray for Caroline as she crosses over to eternity.”

She is survived by her husband David, children–Robert and Allison, and her mother Olivia.

The Erie campus held a prayer vigil on Wednesday afternoon in her honor.

An American woman was killed on Tuesday afternoon in a shark attack on Green Cay, off Montague Beach.

The authorities have not identified the woman believed to be in her 50s, but they confirmed that she was attacked as her children looked on.

The Pennsylvania woman arrived in the Bahamas onboard Royal Caribbean Harmony of the Seas cruise and took a day tour with a local tour company that dropped the family of 5 to 7 individuals on Green Cay, half a mile off Rose Island. While snorkeling, the woman was attacked by a bull shark.

Her children and the tour operator rushed to her aid, bringing her onboard the boat and onto a ramp on the mainland. The woman showed no signs of life and was pronounced dead on the scene.

She is reported to have been bitten on her upper body.

When reporters arrived, her adult children were still on the scene as her body was transported to the morgue.

In a statement to the Associated Press, Royal Caribbean said the woman was a guest on a seven-night cruise that sailed from Port Canaveral, Florida on Sunday and the group of individuals took part in an “independent shore excursion” in the capital.

“Royal Caribbean is providing support and assistance to the guest’s loved ones during this difficult time,” the statement said.