An exclusive photograph of the shark bite victim from yesterday’s attack at Rockaway Beach. Other images I’ve obtained are just too graphic to show. @fox5ny @rosannascotto @BIANCApeters8 pic.twitter.com/QQ9GxP8sf5
— Robert Moses (@RobertMosesFox5) August 8, 2023
A 65-year-old woman is in serious, but stable condition after suffering a shark bite at New York City’s popular Rockaway beach. While New York State has seen an uptick in shark sightings this summer, this is the first attack in New York City in decades.
Police responded to 59th Street and Rockaway Beach just before 6 p.m. Monday, where a woman had been standing in shallow water when she felt a sharp pain in her left leg. According to the New York Times, lifeguards heard the swimmer screaming for help and came to her aid. They removed her from the water, applied a tourniquet, and administered first aid until emergency responders arrived and took her away.
Officials told the New York Times that the Queens resident is in serious, but stable condition at Jamaica Hospital. A police report stated that she lost approximately 20 pounds of flesh from the bite.
“We hope for a full recovery for this swimmer,” said Meghan Lalor, a spokesperson for the New York City parks department. “Though this was a frightening event, we want to remind New Yorkers that shark bites in Rockaway are extremely rare.”
CNN reports that afterwards, lifeguards cleared the beach and police in a helicopter searched unsuccessfully for the shark. “As a safety precaution, Rockaway Beach will be closed to swimming and surfing today, August 8, due to recent shark activity,” said NYC Parks on social media.
This is the latest in a recent uptick of shark encounters in New York State. In July alone, there were five attacks at Long Island beaches. In response, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the state would ramp up surveillance in the form of drones. However, this most recent encounter at Rockaway is unique in that it is the first bite to be reported in New York City since the 1950s.
