LONDON: Lee Fierro, Jaws actress, has died from coronavirus. She was 91.

According to Variety, she was living at an assisted care facility in Ohio when she died.

Fierro’s family is now planning a small funeral service in Ohio bearing in mind the social distancing rules in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

A memorial service will take place in Martha’s Vineyard at a later date once the pandemic has settled. Fierro was best known for starring in Steven Spielberg’s 1975 shark epic Jaws, playing mother to Alex Kintner (played by Jeffrey Voorhees), the second victim of the killer great white shark.

Fans will remember the famous scene where Alex was attacked off the shore of Amity Island, prompting Fierro’s character to storm up to police chief Brody (Roy Scheider) and slap him across the face.

The actress reprised her role as Alex’s mother in sequel Jaws: The Revenge in 1987. During her time working on the first Jaws installment, Fierro worked as a drama teacher at Island Theatre Workshop.

It was perhaps her most important role as she mentored more than 1,000 aspiring actors and worked there for more than 25 years as an artistic director well into her 80s. In 2017, Fierro moved to Ohio to be closer to her family.

(with inputs from Agencies)