Shark Attack Leaves an Austrian Tourist Injured in Marsa Alam

Marsa Alam beach was closed for 48 hours after a shark attacked a 20-year-old Austrian tourist Christine Schachinger while snorkeling Saturday morning in the Red Sea.

Schachinger was rushed to a private hospital in Marsa Alam, a popular tourist spot located in the eastern south of Egypt, and received treatment on her right leg. She was later transferred to Austria for further medical treatment.

“There is no threat to the Austrian tourist’s life,” medical sources in the Red Sea governorate reported.

Although shark attacks are not common in Egypt, environmentalists say certain actions on the part of divers and swimmers may provoke attacks.

The Society for the Rescue and Protection of the Environment of the Red Sea warns against feeding sharks.

In 2010, a German woman was killed and several people were seriously injured in shark attacks off the coast of Sharm el-Sheikh, another popular beach destination in Egypt.

In 2015, a 52-year-old German tourist died after a shark bit off his leg at the knee in the waters off al-Qusair.