South Beach has reopened after a shark sighting closed the popular Edgartown beach to swimming earlier Tuesday. Edgartown parks department director Jessica McGroarty said that the sighting occurred at 12:15 p.m.
South Beach has reopened after a shark sighting closed the popular Edgartown beach to swimming earlier Tuesday.
Edgartown parks administrator Jessica McGroarty said that the sighting occurred at 12:15 p.m., with beachgoers and a beach staff member confirming the sighting.
A bi-plane from the Katama Airfield was then sent to monitor the beach, Ms. McGroarty said, confirming the presence of a shark in the area.
“It was definitely [a shark], because the staff as well as the people on the beach could see it chasing something,” Ms. McGroarty said. “They saw the fin as well as the tail.”
Swimmers were told to exit the water after the sighting, with staff closing the beach for two hours, according to protocol. Ms. McGroarty said beachgoers were compliant with the order.
“It was fine, everybody was out of the water,” Ms. McGroarty said. “It’s just a safety issue.”
Ms. McGroarty did not have further details on the species of shark or its distance from shore. But she said the sighting was confirmed “almost smack dab in the middle” of South Beach, just east of the lifeguard shack.
The sighting is the second of the season, according to the parks director. A shark was also spotted in the South Beach area in early June.
After two hours with no further sightings, the beach reopened at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
“Staff has their eyes on the water, looking for anything that could be a danger,” Ms. McGroarty said. “We just move forward from here.”
Comments
Guess what? Where there are
Tamara Chin Vineyard HavenGuess what? Where there are seals, there are usually sharks! Between the drop, the waves the undertoe and the murkiness of the water, it's not the greatest idea. But beautiful nonetheless!
Guess what? If the water
Steve M ChilmarkGuess what? If the water tastes salty there are probably sharks.
Very few seals off South Beach. Most sharks spotted off the south shore of MV are just cruising by. The main feeding ground for great whites is off Monomoy and nearby parts of the Cape. Thousands of seals there.
Start killing and eating the
Charlie Callahan So Boston/EdgartownStart killing and eating the sharks,before they start killing and eating us. There are way too many sharks and seals and they are protected more than people. And they were never endangered to begin with. Seal is edible and shark tastes like swordfish,especially Mako and Great Whites
We spent five days on the
Bob G Long IslandWe spent five days on the beach there the week of 7/10. Usually for 3 to 4 hours. I saw one seal during our stay cruising through around noon. Seems slight warming of ocean temps have now brought Great Whites well into Maine and south Canada. Guess that's a good thing in regard to swimming around the Vineyard, not so on a global level.
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