A teenager was bitten by a shark while surfing off Fire Island on Monday, and another young woman was possibly attacked in the waters of Robert Moses State Park, authorities said.
The 15-year-old boy was riding a wave when the shark bit him on the heel and toes of his left foot around 5:20 p.m., Suffolk County Police said.
The surfer swam as fast as he could to the shore of Kismet Beach, where a person offered him medical assistance until deputies from the county’s marine office arrived on the scene, officials said.
The youth’s heel and toes were intact, and he was transported to Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip for non-life-threatening injuries.
Earlier that same day, a 15-year-old girl was bitten, likely by a shark, near Camp 3 at Robert Moses State Park at about 1:45 p.m., said George Gorman, Park Regional Director. Long Island.
The minor received treatment for small puncture wounds to her left leg, the New York Post reported.
Lifeguards at the scene deployed enhanced drone patrols to track any sharks on the surface of the water, but found nothing.
Swimming was off-limits for about 45 minutes before bathers re-entered the water, Gorman said.
The confirmed shark attack on Fire Island was the first of the 2023 summer season on Long Island after eight attacks were reported in 2022, Newsday reported.
Keep reading:
- A 69-year-old woman has died after being attacked by an alligator while walking her dog in South Carolina.
- Video: Shark pulls a man who put his hands in the water in Florida
- Iowa woman amputated leg after being attacked by a shark in the Bahamas