Monday, August 9, 2010

Shark Weekend Hits Close to Home as Deadly Fish Seen Near Rockaways by Corinne Lestch and Tina Moore - NY Daily News

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It was shark weekend in Rockaway Beach.

Lifeguards cleared the water at the Queens beach for about 45 minutes Saturday after sharks were spotted, witnesses told NY1.

"There was a girl on a board and the shark was tugging at her leg, her (leg)strap," a beachgoer said. "She was out with her father, and when she looked down the shark was circling her board."

The girl's father told lifeguards he saw three small sharks, said the woman, who didn't give her name.

Larry Jamieson, 48, said a Parks Department employee at the beach told him she also saw three sharks.

Jamieson, of Nyack, said it was a "little freaky" when everyone got back into the water to surf after waiting nearly an hour.

"There were 20 of us out there and I could see everybody looking all around, their heads bobbing up and down," Jamieson said. "I felt like we were on a movie set."

"Everytime a seagull dives in the water everyone's looking around for a shark."

After a while, everyone seemed to forget about sharks and enjoy the waves, he said, adding that he caught some good ones.

A Parks Department spokeswoman didn't have information about the incident but said the beach was also closed briefly Friday after a possible shark sighting.