Crime & Safety
Swimming Remains Off-Limits After Shark Sightings On Fire Island
It has been prohibited since Monday at Davis Park Beach where sharks were seen feeding offshore, a town spokesman said.
DAVIS PARK, NY — Swimming continued to be prohibited on Wednesday at the Town of Brookhaven’s Davis Park Beach facility on Fire Island due to shark sightings offshore.
Large schools of bunker activity were spotted about 15 yards offshore, drawing the sharks over the weekend and into Monday, prompting town officials to close the beach, but only to swimmers, town spokesman Jack Krieger said.
Sharks have been sighted farther west in Nassau County over the past two weeks, causing the Town of Hempstead to close Lido Beach. A lifeguard reported possibly having been bitten by one on July 26.
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Swimming was suspended at Jones and Robert Moses beaches on Wednesday.
Sharks have not been the only visitors to local waters lately. Humpback whales and dolphins, which also feed on bunker fish, have been spotted in recent weeks offshore in Smith Point County Park in Shirley.
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A humpback whale was also spotted, as well as several large stingrays, offshore from Davis Park over last weekend, according to a report on Fire Island and Beyond.
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