Additional Coverage:
- New York beachgoer’s bone exposed as foot bitten ‘clean through’ in suspected shark attack (themirror.com)
A lifeguard at Jones Beach State Park in New York City has recounted the terrifying moment a swimmer’s foot was bitten “clean through” in a suspected shark attack on Friday. The victim suffered deep lacerations to his foot while swimming near Field 6, prompting an immediate beach closure as authorities responded.
According to the New York City Parks Department, lifeguards acted swiftly, providing first aid and calling for an ambulance to transport the injured swimmer to a nearby hospital. Swimming was suspended during a thorough search for sharks and other dangerous marine life in the area.
Lifeguard Kate Maio, who treated the man, described the frantic scene. “He came running over to our lifeguard stand, his foot bleeding, saying, ‘I got bit, I got bit!
I don’t want to look,’” Maio recalled. She said the bite felt like a strong jaw clamp and left a single, deep gash exposing the white bone beneath the victim’s toes.
Another lifeguard quickly fashioned a tourniquet using a shirt, but the wound continued to bleed heavily.
Though the victim did not see the shark, another beachgoer reported spotting a fin shortly after the attack. After an hour-long search yielded no sightings, officials allowed limited swimming to resume, restricting beachgoers to waist-deep water. The injured swimmer is expected to recover fully.
This incident follows several recent shark sightings across New York City and Long Island beaches. On Thursday, multiple sharks were spotted near Rockaway Beach in Queens, causing temporary closures. Similarly, lifeguards at Point Lookout on Long Island spotted a shark, leading to the closure of local beaches.
These sightings have surged amid record-breaking heat drawing larger crowds to coastal areas, with officials increasingly relying on drone technology to monitor marine activity. Despite sharks frequently inhabiting U.S. waters, experts emphasize that actual attacks remain rare.
Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Museum of Natural History’s shark research program, told The Associated Press that globally there are only 60 to 80 unprovoked shark bites each year, with multiple bites in close proximity being extremely uncommon.