Terrifying last seconds of 77-year-old grandma swallowed by shark big as a helicopter.
Tyna Webb, 77, was swimming calmly when a huge great white shark started circling around her.
Out of nowhere, the predator lunged — right in front of shocked beachgoers.
When the shark finished, all that remained was her bright red swim cap.
A routine for 17 years
Shark attacks on humans are very uncommon. In the United States, the chances of being attacked while at the beach are merely 1 in 11.5 million.
However, when they do occur, the results can be catastrophic.
In November 2004, 77-year-old Tyna Webb was relishing her daily swim off Jager’s Walk near Fish Hoek, Cape Town — a routine she had cherished for 17 years and loved more than anything.
Renowned for her effortless glide through the water, her Monday morning swim was a common sight for the locals. However, this time it turned into a nightmare when a great white shark appeared, circling the skilled swimmer.
André Mentor, 48, was serving as a spotter for a local fishing crew on the mountainside when he witnessed the attack unfold.
“Every morning this woman swims the backstroke, but this morning as she was swimming, the shark came to investigate. Despite our screams and flag waving to alert her, the shark managed to grab her,” Mentor recounted to IOL.
People screamed and shouted.
Other onlookers also watched in horror as the 16-foot-long shark struck.
In shock, they waved and yelled desperately to warn Tyna – but she was gazing at the sky, her ears covered by her swim cap, as her family members noted.
“We yelled and shouted, ‘Shark! Shark!’ at her,” said a fisherman at Sunny Cove. “Then it lunged at her, struck her in the thigh, and tossed her completely out of the water. Then she vanished. By the time we rushed down to alert other swimmers to exit the water, it was too late for her.”
Paul Bennet, commodore of the False Bay Yacht Club, observed the entire incident from his home:
“All that remained was a small red bathing cap. I stepped outside and saw the shark attacking what I initially thought was a Cape fur seal. Then I realized it was a body being violently shaken by a large shark. It then released the woman and swam a short distance away, turned, and charged back at high speed, striking her. Its entire mouth emerged from the water and pulled her under. I never saw her again.”
Thomas Spies, Webb’s son-in-law and a local doctor, arrived shortly after the attack, but by the afternoon, Webb’s body had still not been found.
“Larger than the helicopter”
Craig Lambinon from the National Sea Rescue Institute later stated, “At this point, Tyna Webb is presumed dead, and I believe her family has accepted that.
Friends and family members characterized the situation as distressing. Webb’s daughters, Isabelle Spies and Ninky Matthee, gathered with friends at their home in Noordhoek while police divers and NSRI helicopters searched the vicinity.
However, the search was ultimately discontinued.
“My mom was an incredible swimmer who adored nature and the outdoors, but the ocean held a special place in her heart. She was fiercely independent and always had a wonderful spirit,” Matthee shared with ION.
Craig Lambinon from the NSRI mentioned that a shark had been seen in the vicinity, calling it “massive — larger than the helicopter.” Lambinon pointed out that it is quite rare for a great white to attack a person multiple times and proposed that fish thrown away by local fishermen might have triggered a feeding frenzy.
Her final moments
Webb, whose full name was Cecilia Mathilda Webb, was the youngest of nine siblings. She earned a BA in English and Latin from the University of the Free State, taught in Pretoria and Johannesburg, and relocated to Cape Town in 1987.
Friends remembered Tyna as a woman with sparkling eyes and a perpetual smile that could warm anyone’s heart. She was kind, gracious, and humble, possessing a sharp intellect that, as an Afrikaner, had long acknowledged the cruelty and futility of apartheid — well ahead of many of her contemporaries.
She resided in Fish Hoek from 1989 until her passing.
Those who knew her believe that in her final moments, she likely confronted the shark with grace, recognizing that it was merely acting on instinct. Throughout her 17 years swimming off Jager’s Walk, she had met dolphins, seals, and even whales — and she was always conscious that sharks were part of that ecosystem.
“We feel the way she departed is the completion of a circle. That the sea took her is the spiritual culmination of her entire life. You know, she swam in that sea for 17 years,” a friend remarked at her memorial service at St. George’s Cathedral in Cape Town.
Tyna regarded the ocean as her home, showing reverence for all its inhabitants, including sharks. She also hosted full moon gatherings for friends at her blue-and-white apartment with a view of the sea.
Many who attended her service suggested that her departure had a mythical essence — she had been embraced by the very waters she cherished, bringing to a close the narrative of a life fully experienced.