Rockaway Beach shark sightings keep swimmers out of water on 4th of July weekend
Officials say they have been monitoring the waters for sharks, including a stretch of Rockaway Beach in Queens where swimmers were temporarily ordered out of the water due to sightings.
The sightings have taken place several times since Thursday.
Rockaway Beach shark sightings
On Saturday around 6 p.m., drone teams spotted a shark just 100 feet from swimmers near Beach 113. The sighting spanned Beach 113 Street to Beach 115.
The Office of Emergency Management quickly shut down the beach and alerted anyone in or near the water.
Friday on the 4th of July, there were two sightings at Rockaway Beach before noon, according to city officials. They say a shark was seen around 11:30 a.m. near Beach 32nd Street and another was reported at Beach 144th Street. A third was reported near Beach 30th Street, prompting a portion of the beach to close for an hour.
For now, the city says they will constantly patrol the beaches with drones to detect shark activity and distressed swimmers.
Is Rockaway Beach open?
Rockaway Beach is set to be open on Sunday. City officials say they will make any necessary closures as the day goes on.
Data from 2024 shows shark attacks are rare, with only 28 unprovoked shark bites and one person killed in the United States last year.
In late June, a woman was bitten in the waters off Jones Beach by what experts say was likely a juvenile sand tiger shark.
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