South Dakota

Friends reveal US mom of 2 may have died from ‘medical issue’ before being eaten by shark in Indonesia

Published

8 months ago

October 8, 2024

Friends reveal US mom of 2 may have died from ‘medical issue’ before being eaten by shark in Indonesia

The American tourist who was devoured by a shark in Indonesia is believed to have died from a “medical issue” while diving, her friends told The Post Monday — revealing that she was an experienced deep-sea diver who was “really enjoying life.”

Colleen Monfore, a retired mom of two from Holland, Michigan, was enjoying her dream vacation — a seven-week diving tour with her husband Mike — when tragedy struck on Sept. 26, family pal Rick Sass said.

Just a few days into the trip, Monfore, 68, disappeared during a group dive around Pulau Reong island, north of Timor-Leste and off the coast of the Southwest Maluku Regency. Two weeks later, fishermen in Timor-Leste caught the shark — and cut human remains out of its belly more than 70 miles from where she vanished.

Authorities were able to ID Monfore from the body’s fingerprints, according to Sass, a longtime friend who has been in close contact with the family throughout their harrowing ordeal.

“We do not believe this was a shark attack. Mike thinks she suffered some kind of medical issue in the water,” Sass told The Post.

Sass and his wife Kim – who ran a dive shop together for more than 40 years – examined photos from the dive, spoke with Mike at length about the incident and reviewed data from his dive computer.

The friends are adamant Monfore, who Rick Sass said seems to have been separated from the group when rough waters forced them to turn around, was not killed by a shark. She was around 24 feet down and probably had half a tank of air left, he said.

“There was a down current at the turnaround site, but it was manageable,” Kim Sass wrote in a Facebook post. “I’ve easily done 1000+ dive[s] with this gracious woman … I don’t believe it was the environment and certainly not a shark that ended her life.”

Rick Sass added: “They dove massive numbers of trips with us over 30 years. Bali, Philippines, Bikini Atoll, you name it.

“She knew what she was doing.”

Mike Monfore was already an avid diver when he met Colleen in high school in their native state of South Dakota, and she soon too fell in love with the ocean.

They had two kids and, eventually, four grandkids, but they never stopped traveling the world and exploring the seas together. “They were both retired and really enjoying life,” Rick Sass said.

“We used to call her ‘Saint Colleen.’ She was an amazing woman,” he added. “She loved nature and animals. I know she would have never wanted a shark to be blamed for this tragedy.”

He noted that shark attacks against divers are extremely rare.

“And sharks are not that way. We’ve dove with hammerheads, tiger sharks, bull sharks. You have to give them respect and be cautious, but they won’t just attack you.”

There were only 69 confirmed unprovoked shark bites worldwide last year, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, and 94% of those were on snorkelers, waders, and surfers. The remaining 6% are categorized as “other.”

It’s not yet clear how exactly Colleen Monfore died. Grisly photos from the scene show the shark in question cut open — with human remains in a black wetsuit nearby.

“The shark was caught but it was not in normal health. I thought it had swallowed plastic or a fishing net,” the fisherman said, according to Asia Pacific Press. “It was cut open to find the problem and inside there were the remains of a woman.”

Rick Sass said her husband has been struggling not only with her death but bringing his wife’s remains back home.

“He’s hardly been sleeping at all, partly because he’s up on the phone with Indonesia, which is a 12-hour time difference,” he said. “He’s answering phone calls in the middle of the night, and talking to us during the day, and not just not being able to sleep because of this horrible thing that happened.”

Indonesian authorities said an investigation is underway.

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South Dakota

SD Supreme Court Justice announces retirement

Published

11 hours ago

June 11, 2025

Press Room

SD Supreme Court Justice announces retirement

PIERRE, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – South Dakota Supreme Court Justice Janine M. Kern made an announcement on Wednesday that she will be retiring from the bench on Dec. 8, 2025.

Justice Kern was appointed to the South Dakota Supreme Court in 2014 by Governor Dennis Daugaard to represent the First Supreme Court District, which includes Custer, Lawrence, Meade, and Pennington counties.

“It is with a heart brimming with gratitude for the trust and confidence placed in me, which gave me the opportunity to serve the people of this great state, that I notify you of my retirement on December 8, 2025, nearly twenty-nine years to the day of my investiture as a circuit court judge,” said Justice Kern.

“Justice Kern has always had an unwavering commitment to justice, the integrity of the courts, and a deep compassion for the people we serve. Her passion for law and for people has impacted all of us and made the court system better,” said Chief Justice Steven R. Jensen.

Justice Kern was appointed a circuit court judge in 1996 in the Seventh Judicial Circuit, comprised of Custer, Fall River, Oglala Lakota, and Pennington counties.

Before serving as a judge, Justice Kern received a Bachelor of Science from Arizona State University in 1982 and her juris doctor degree from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1985.

She later worked in a variety of roles with the Attorney General’s office, such as the appellate division, drug prosecution unit, and as director of the litigation division.

Justice Kern is a member of the American Law Institute, the State Bar Association, the Pennington County Bar Association, the American Bar Association Fellows, and past president of the South Dakota Judges Association.

“She has been an incredible lawyer, prosecutor, and judge for 28 years. I work with several young attorneys who look up to her as a role model, so her steady hand on the court will be missed. As I review potential appointments to replace her on the bench, I will be hopeful that we can find a future Supreme Court judge of her caliber,” said Governor Rhoden.

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South Dakota

Mitchell town hall to be held at Dakota Wesleyan Wednesday night

Published

1 day ago

June 10, 2025

Press Room

Mitchell town hall to be held at Dakota Wesleyan Wednesday night

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – Throughout April, South Dakota community leaders Nikki Gronli and Julian Beaudion hosted town halls across the state allowing people to raise the concerns they have with the Trump administration.

Now they are back by popular demand with the next one coming up Wednesday evening.

Gronli and Beaudion have previously held town halls in Rapid City, Aberdeen, Vermillion and Sioux Falls, and every one saw a massive crowd.

Now the tour heads to Mitchell.

The popularity of the town halls resulted in changes in venues and people having to stand at meetings as attendees.

Panelists Nikki Gronli and Julian Beaudion delivered the 40-page report to South Dakota’s congressional delegation but only received feedback from Representative Dusty Johnson.

But both Gronli and Beaudion share optimism in the participation in political discourse throughout the state.

“What we saw from the citizens who attended these town halls is that there is still a lot of fight left in them, a lot of fight left in us, folks had no problem talking through some of the concerns,” Beaudion, a US Senate candidate said.

In previous meetings, attendees addressed concerns they had regarding cuts to Medicaid, the Department of Education, and from DOGE, as well as the effects of tariffs.

Now they are prioritizing town halls being more focused on one issue, this starts Wednesday in Mitchell at Dakota Wesleyan University.

“There’s a great farm community, so we decided we would do this one focused as opposed to the last town halls which we allowed people to cover whatever topic they wanted to, we thought we would switch it up and see what the response is like,” Gronli said.

Gronli expects a lot of questions as to what the next farm bill will look like and when it will be passed, the current one has been extended twice and passed in 2018.

She will have the help of another former USDA staffer to answer questions throughout the night.

“I also expect having Marcia Bunger there on stage as the former risk management lead that there will be conversations about crop insurance, the importance to our ag producers and what policies are being made around crop insurance,” Gronli said.

Dates haven’t been announced but town halls are planned for Brookings and Rapid City so far.

Dakota News Now reached out for comment to Senators Thune and Rounds and Representative Johnson, but we did not get a response in time for publication.

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South Dakota

SD Lottery Powerball, Lucky For Life winning numbers for June 9, 2025

Published

2 days ago

June 10, 2025

Press Room

The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at June 9, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from June 9 drawing

30-33-40-43-52, Powerball: 25, Power Play: 4

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from June 9 drawing

03-07-17-29-46, Lucky Ball: 15

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lotto America numbers from June 9 drawing

06-14-35-44-49, Star Ball: 05, ASB: 02

Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.

When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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