BABYLON, N.Y. (AP) — Shark sightings have become more common along Long Island’s shores this summer. Since June, there have been at least five verified encounters where sharks bit swimmers. Though there were no fatalities, sightings prompted officials to temporarily close some beaches to swimming, including New York City’s Rockaway Beach and a Long Island beach where a surfer was bitten on the calf. Sharks aren’t new to New York’s waters. But in the last century the state had documented only 13 shark attacks. Experts say the recent bites were likely accidents that happened as sharks chased schools of fish.
Shark sightings get more common at New York beaches
