A paddleboarder was attacked by a shark Wednesday morning at Smith Point County Park in Shirley, county officials said, the latest in a series of shark-related incidents on Long Island this summer.
The park, which was closed for bathing all morning, reopened to bathers around 1 p.m.
The paddleboarder, a 41-year-old man, suffered a 4-inch cut in his leg, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said at a news conference Wednesday morning.
The man, who was not identified, was taken by ambulance to Long Island Community Hospital in Patchogue and was expected to be fine, Bellone said.
The attack, the second at Smith Point in 10 days, took place around 7:30 a.m. and rescuers were not on duty, Bellone said.
“I think it’s an indication that what we’re seeing is something of a new normal in which sharks … are closer to the shore than they have been,” Bellone said.
Bellone said the paddleboarder thought the shark was a sand tiger shark and the man tried to fight him, punching him. The shark turned around, according to the paddleboarder’s account, but then a wave came and brought the paddleboarder closer to shore, Bellone said.
The paddleboarder managed to reach the ground and a checkpoint at a campsite, and a park ranger called 911. The man was taken to hospital by the Shirley community ambulance, Bellone said.
While shark attacks off the coast of Long Island are rare, officials are taking steps to ensure the safety of all residents, including the use of lifeguards who control the waters with jet skis, drones and watercraft boards. rem.
Bryan Lewis, 57, of Riverhead, who on Wednesday was accompanying a trip to the beach for Little Flower Children and Family Services in New York on the Wading River, said he had no hesitation in returning to the water.
“This is the opportunity you take,” he said. “It’s the ocean. It’s their habitat.”
That’s not how Jeanine Frazier, 36, of Coram feels. Frazier was on her way to the beach with her husband and two children when she learned of the attack. Although the family usually goes to the ocean, on Wednesdays they were happier to stay on the shore, just getting their feet wet to cool off.
“Absolutely not,” he said. “Not a safe place.”
On July 3, a lifeguard taking part in a training exercise on Smith Point Beach was attacked by what was described as a 4 to 5 foot long shark, which bit him in the chest.
The rescuer, 10-year veteran Zack Gallo, was playing the role of victim during that training exercise when he was attacked, Bellone told a news conference at the time, adding that the shark also bit the Gallo’s right hand as the lifeguard tried to dodge. switched off.
Gallo was able to reach the shore with the help of other lifeguards, Bellone said.
A shark was seen near Smith Point Beach shortly after the attack, although it was unclear if it was the same shark.
In late June, a man swimming on Jones Beach was bitten on the right foot, although Nassau County officials said it was unclear whether that incident involved a shark.
Davis Park beach on Fire Island was closed to bathers last week after a shark was seen swimming near the shore, officials said.
The city of Hempstead said it had 21 confirmed sightings on its beaches in 2020 and 29 in 2021 after having only two confirmed shark sightings between 1998 and 2020.
In 2021 and 2022 there have been sightings in Long Beach, as well as in Nickerson Beach, Jones Beach State Park, Robert Moses State Park, Ocean Beach, Davis Park Beach, Smith Point County Park and Pike’s Beach, officials said.
Experts told Newsday last week that recent attacks continue what was described as unprecedented escalation for an area that records show had averaged one attack per decade over the past century.
They said part of this increase was probably due to conservation efforts, which have helped clean up local waters and in turn have led to a resurgence of the Atlantic menhaden, known as a bunker, a bait fish that attracts predators, including sharks.
These experts also said warming of the ocean has also contributed to more shark sightings in northern locations.
Please check again for updates to this developing story.
John Valenti, a Newsday journalist since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for research, business and breaking news reports, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee’pea,” a book about former New York Playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti appears in the Emmy-winning ESPN film 30 of 30 “Big Shot”.