Overview
- A swimmer at Jones Beach Field 6 suffered a suspected shark bite to the foot on Friday and was treated by lifeguards before being taken to a hospital with injuries that officials do not believe are life threatening.
- Officials halted swimming for about an hour after the incident, searched the water with drones, jet skis and boats, and then allowed swimmers back with orders to stay waist-deep and close to shore.
- The Jones Beach bite followed multiple confirmed sightings on Thursday off Rockaway Beach and Long Island, including a roughly 9-foot sandbar shark seen near Point Lookout that prompted intermittent closures and red-flag warnings.
- State and local agencies deployed expanded drone fleets, shark-patrol watercraft and extra lifeguards this summer to spot sharks more quickly and to clear water segments before reopening beaches.
- Despite the events, holiday crowds returned to Jones Beach on Saturday with medical teams on standby, and officials continue to tell beachgoers to follow lifeguard directions because shark bites remain rare even as detections rise.