Giulia Manfrini: Italian surfer dies after being hit by a fish off the coast of Indonesia

CNN
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An Italian surfer has died after being impaled in the chest by a fish with a sharp beak while surfing off the coast of West Sumatra, Indonesia.

Giulia Manfrini, 36, was surfing in the Mentawai Islands, a remote island chain, when she suffered a “freak accident”, said her business partner James Colston.

“Unfortunately, despite the courageous efforts of her partner, local resort staff and doctors, Giulia could not be saved,” Colston said in a statement on Instagram on Sunday. “We believe she died doing what she loved, in a place she loved.”

According to state news agency Antara, Lahmudin Siregar, acting head of the Mentawai Islands Disaster Management Authority, said Manfrini was hit in the chest by a swordfish while surfing off the southern part of Siberut island around 9:30 a.m. local time.

According to a medical report, she suffered a stab wound about five centimeters deep in the upper left chest area, the authority said.

Together, Colston and Manfrini founded the travel company AWAVE Travel, which organized trips to popular surfing destinations, including the Mentawai Islands.

Hidden Bay Resort Mentawais said in an Instagram post that their “client and friend” was “hit in the chest by a needlefish and died almost instantly.”

Both needlefish and swordfish have long, sharp beaks and can jump out of the water. Although their physical characteristics can be dangerous to humans, deaths are extremely rare.

Two witnesses were nearby at the time of the accident and provided first aid. They rushed her to the Pei Pei Pasakiat Taileleu health center, but her life could not be saved, Antara reported, citing Siberut police.

The mayor of Venaria Reale, a town near Turin in northern Italy where Manfrini's family lives, expressed his condolences to those who knew her.

“The news of her death has shocked us and leaves us powerless in the face of the tragedy that took her life so early,” Fabio Giulivi said in a statement. “To Mama Chiara, Papa Giorgio and all the people who loved them, a touching hug from me and the whole city.”

According to the AWAVE Travel website, Manfrini was a former professional snowboarder who had a passion for surfing that led her to “chasing waves all over the world.”

“Giulia couldn’t travel without people falling in love with her smile, her laugh and her endless stoke,” wrote Colston, the agency’s co-founder.

“We love you, Giulia. I’m so sorry to say goodbye.”