Woman, 65, killed in shark attack off Hawaii 'swam in the ocean every day'

A 65-year-old woman bitten to death by a shark while snorkelling off the Hawaiian island of Maui loved the ocean and went swimming every day, her brother said.

Maui County police said Margaret Cruse of the local community of Kihei was found floating in the waters of Ahihi Kinau Bay and had injuries consistent with a shark attack.

It was the first fatal shark attack in Hawaii since 2013.

Cruse, who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, had lived for the past 12 years in Maui where she had many friends, her brother, Bill Cruse, said from Redding, California.

"She did what she wanted to do. She loved animals. Accidents happen, and I think she was aware that nature can be a hard thing sometimes," said Cruse, a retired police officer.

He added that his sister loved the water and snorkelling. "She went every morning ... she was never afraid of anything in the ocean because she did it so often," he said.