A young woman who suffered “minor lacerations” to her foot while swimming in the ocean at Jones Beach, New York, most likely received them from being bitten by a tiger shark, officials say.
The 20-year-old woman had been swimming in waist-deep water at the Central Mall beachfront on Wednesday when she reported being bitten by something in the water, according to New York State Parks official.
She was taken to Nassau County University Medical Center Hospital with non-fatal injuries after lifeguards and EMTs responded to the incident. She reported being unable to see what attacked her, with officials determining that it had most likely been a juvenile sand tiger shark.
“I been here my whole life and never seen a shark in here,” resident Alejandro Aranjo told ABC7 Eyewitness News.
Aranjo continued to talk about how he would bring his family to the beach, and was now unsure if he wanted to continue visiting.
“I don’t even know if I’m going to let them go in to be honest,” Aranjo added.
The public were not permitted to enter the water for the remainder of the day as officials searched for dangerous marine life using drones.
Park officials have released advisories warning the public and telling them how to avoid attacks from dangerous marine life. They recommend staying out of the water at night, avoiding any murky water, maintaining distance from appetizing schools of fish and following any instructions delivered by lifeguards.
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