Remains of Missing Triathlete Erica Fox Found Off Santa Cruz Coast After Fatal Shark Attack

The remains of Erica Fox, a 55-year-old triathlete who went missing while training in the ocean off the Santa Cruz coast, have been recovered, authorities confirmed. Fox is believed to have died following a fatal shark attack while swimming with members of her local swim group.

According to reports, Fox’s body was located Saturday afternoon in the ocean south of Davenport Beach, approximately 25 miles from where she was last seen on December 21. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office said recovery teams found the remains around 2 p.m.

Fox had been swimming with her husband, Jean-Francis Vanreusel, and other members of the Kelp Krawlers open-water swim group when she disappeared. Vanreusel told the Mercury News that he was swimming roughly 100 yards behind his wife when the incident occurred.

Coast Guard officials said witnesses in the area reported seeing a shark at the surface shortly before it submerged. Search efforts continued for several days before the remains were recovered.

Vanreusel described his wife as fearless and deeply passionate about the ocean, saying she understood the risks associated with open-water swimming but refused to live in fear.

“She lived her life fully,” he told the Mercury News during a memorial swim held along the coastline by fellow Kelp Krawlers.

Fox was reportedly still wearing her black wetsuit when she was recovered, along with a shark deterrent device designed to reduce the likelihood of encounters with marine predators.

According to local reports, Fox’s death marks the second fatal shark attack in the area in more than seven decades, and the first since a teenager was killed in 1952. It is also the second serious shark incident involving a Kelp Krawlers member in recent years. In 2021, another swimmer survived a shark bite after being rescued by nearby paddleboarders.

Members of the swimming community say the loss has left them shaken.

“I think we’re all still in shock,” said longtime Kelp Krawlers swimmer Sharen Carey. “Right now, all we can do is support one another.”

Authorities have not released additional details as the investigation into the incident continues.