Long Island officials discuss shark safety after 5 attacks
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- After at least five people were apparently bitten by sharks so far this week, officials on Long Island are taking new steps involving shark safety.
The Town of Hempstead is stepping up their shark patrol. That includes the use of drone, personal watercraft and boats to patrol waters. Lifeguards are also being trained on identifying shark dorsal fins and swimming patterns.
Hempstead Town Supervisor Don Clavin held a news conference Thursday to discuss it.
"This isn't 'Star Trek,' ladies and gentlemen. Sharks just don't beam in and then beam out. They come to the area. They migrate up and down the coastline," Clavin said.
That's why Long Island's South Shore-facing beaches in villages, towns, counties and state are pooling their technical knowledge and expertise and sharing information on the latest shark sightings.
"We have our Jet Ski patrolling daily, going east to west. We also have our new implementation of our drones. Our EMT crew, they come and see if there's any dangerous marine life out there," said Justine Anderson, Hempstead's deputy commissioner of aquatics.
Sharks have been on the minds of Long Islanders as word spread of five bite victims off our coast -- in Quogue and Robert Moses State Park and on Fire Island -- in less than 48 hours.
"Sharks? Sure I am concerned. That's why I went to the knee," beachgoer Julio Oquisa said.
Some parents say , for the first time, they are discussing shark safety with their children.
"I like seaweeds better than sharks," one child said.
"I don't really like going near sharks, honestly, 'cause I don't wanna get bit," one person said.
The waters are clean and warm. As bait fish come close to shore, the sharks follow.
"If you go in the water right now in Long Island, you are swimming with sharks," shark biologist Craig O'Connell said. "If we were on their menu, we would absolutely not stand a chance."
They are much more interested in fish than people, he says.
Before fog dissipated, dozens of junior lifeguards were training in protocol Thursday.
"Let u worry about if there's a sighting of a shark. I've seen these lifeguards take anywhere from 100 to 200 people out of the water during a sighting, and you know what, the residents understood that," Clavin said.
Shark bites this year already account for more than half of Long Island's record eight attacks in 2022, and the peak of shark season doesn't begin for weeks.
CLICK HERE for a list of beach safety tips from the nonprofit Ocearch.
