Authorities have suspended the search for a woman who went missing in the waters off of Pacific Grove this weekend, police said Monday evening. The woman has been identified as 55-year-old Monterey County resident Erica Fox. Multiple agencies suspended the search for Fox on Monday afternoon af ter what the Pacific Grove Police Department said was more than 15 hours of search operations covering an area of more than 84 square nautical miles. The searching began just after noon on Sunday, when a full water rescue response was initiated for Fox, who had been swimming near Lovers Point. Unconfirmed reports of a shark sighting and even an attack leading to Fox’s disappearance prompted the city of Pacific Grove to close all beaches within a mile of Lovers Point on Sunday due to an “unconfirmed shark incident,” the city said on social media. “Two witnesses indicated the swimmer may have encountered a shark while swimming offshore near Lovers Point,” said the city of Monterey. Pacific Grove Police Commander Brian Anderson said that a witness reported seeing a “large splash” that prompted the group that the woman was swimming with to all come to shore. Once there, they realized that she was no longer with them, he said. According to Petty Officer Christopher Sappey with the U.S. Coast Guard, one person reported seeing something disturbing. “The person who reported the shark sighting claimed they saw a shark breach the water with what appeared to be a human body in its mouth,” he said. “They then witnessed the shark submerge below the waterline without resurfacing.” Sappey clarified that there is no evidence confirming that Fox was attacked by a shark. “I can confirm that there was a reported sighting in the area, however we cannot necessarily correlate this sighting with the missing person as there is no confirming evidence of that,” Sappey said. The Pacific Grove Police Department, the U.S. Coast Guard, Monterey Fire Department, and the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office took part in rescue efforts on Monday, according to police. Rescue workers have used boats, drones, and a helicopter. ...read more read less