Florida paddleboarder trailed by hammerhead shark miles off coast
Video captured a hammerhead shark following a paddleboarder who was 35 to 40 miles off the coast of Palm Beach County last weekend. Credit: Jason Brushaber
Two more swimmers were reportedly attacked by sharks in the waters near New York beaches this week.
The men were bitten by sharks off Long Island, including one bite in the hand at Fire Island Pines and the other in the knee in Quogue, according to FOX 5 New York.
The incidents occurred around 60 miles apart and just a day after two others reported being attacked.
The Village of Quogue Police Department said Tuesday that it had been notified of an injured individual at the Quogue Village Beach at approximately 1:50 p.m. ET.
NEW YORK BEACHGOERS BITTEN BY SHARKS ON FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND
A victim of a shark bite is seen with his right hand bandaged in Great River, New York, after being transported by Suffolk County Police boat from Fire Island Pines on July 4, 2023. (James Carbone/Newsday RM via Getty Images)
The 47-year-old man was swimming in chest deep water when he was bitten and sustained several lacerations to his right knee.
While a shark was not seen in the water, the bite was from a larger marine animal. The victim was transported to Peconic Bay Medical Center by Westhampton War Memorial Ambulance for treatment of the non-life-threatening injuries.
Shortly after, a 49-year-old man reported having a hand bitten while swimming near Fire Island Pines Beach, according to The Associated Press.
The Suffolk County Police Department wrote on Facebook that one man had been bitten at 1:55 p.m., and the second at 4:25 p.m. The second victim was also transported to an area hospital for the treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.
The department said it was increasing its shark patrols in response to the recent events.
People on the shores of Quogue Village Beach in New York on March 5, 2004. (Dukas/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
"In response to the shark encounters as well as incidents reported in other police jurisdictions this week, the Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau and Aviation Section is conducting increased patrols at our beaches. The SCPD is also utilizing drones for a birds-eye view on the local waterways," it said, urging swimmers to remain vigilant and "calmly exit the water and alert the lifeguard on duty or a local official" if there is a shark or a pod of bunker fish that attracts them.
At least one beach delayed opening after drones spotted what officials initially believed to be some 50 sand sharks near a popular beach park. Swimmers were told to stay close to shore when the beach reopened. On Friday, though, the New York State Parks Department confirmed to Fox News that they were another species of fish, not sharks.
These incidents follow separate attacks on Monday.
A sand tiger shark in the Scientific Center aquarium in Kuwait on July 5, 2022. (Asad/Xinhua via Getty Images)
A 15-year-old boy was surfing when he was bitten on his left foot at 5:20 p.m. at Kismet Beach, and a 15-year-old girl was treated for an apparent shark bite to a leg, although George Gorman – the regional director with New York State Parks – told Newsday that they could not definitively say what bit her.
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"This is our new normal," Gorman told FOX 5 New York.
Data from the University of Florida's Florida Museum of Natural History International Shark Attack File shows New York had the second-most unprovoked bites in the country last year. The U.S. recorded the most unprovoked shark bites in 2022, with 41 confirmed cases, although, that number is lower than in 2021.
Fox News' Henry Naccari and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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