A little girl was killed in a horrific piranha attack after falling into a river. Clara Vitoria, 2, died outside her riverside  home, which had no fence to prevent her from falling into the water. 

The little girl lived with her parents in a floating structure near the city of Coari, in the Brazilian  state of Amazonas. The tragic incident happened on Monday, with the girl reportedly falling into the river through a hole of the floating home. The fall happened during a moment of inattention by her parents, it has been said.

The parents entered the river to search for their daughter and her body was found around five minutes later. Sadly, she was pronounced dead at the scene. Most of her injuries were to her neck and were caused by the piranha  attack. Her body was taken to the Legal Medical Institute for forensic procedures and the case was registered with police.

It’s been reported that the area where the girl fell had no fencing or guardrails because it had been set aside for the future construction of a bathroom.

It comes after piranhas attacked swimmers at a popular Brazilian resort in October, with several people injured following the incident at the Miriti Beach in Manacapuru, in the state of Amazonas, Brazil.

Among those who were injured was a seven-month-old baby who lost part of his toe during the attacks. The Manacapuru city council has since advised all swimmers to avoid going into the water “until the fish disperse”.

Local fishermen noted the piranha attacks could be related to the species’ breeding season, advising swimmers to exercise precautions.

Biologist and aquatic ecology expert, Edinbergh Caldas Oliveira, said: “The fish act defensively and usually deliver a single warning bite to drive away intruders rather than launching sustained attacks.”

He told Brazilian news outlet G1, per the Associated Press: “Such incidents are accidents caused by human interference with natural habitats.”