Beaches Evacuated Following Possible Shark Attack

CORONA DEL MAR, CA - Newport Beach lifeguards have ordered everyone out of the water from Corona del Mar State Beach to the Newport Pier after a woman with bloody bites that may have been from a shark was pulled from the water off Corona del Mar, authorities said.

A lifeguard rescue boat was on patrol at 4:15 p.m. Saturday when lifeguards noticed a female swimmer in distress, said Newport Beach spokeswoman Tara Finnigan.

"A veteran lifeguard says he saw bite marks on her torso," Finnigan said. She was conscious and talking as she was taken to O.C. Global Medical Center.

So far, the woman's injuries are not confirmed as a shark attack, Finnigan said. A helicopter has scoured the coastline and not spotted a shark in the ocean.

"The chief lifeguard says he cannot confirm it was a shark attack," Finnigan said.

The evacuation comes on Memorial Day weekend, one of the busiest beach weekends of the year.

--City News Service, photo via Pixabay