Shark Attacks Lifeguard in Long Island Leads to Closure of Two New York Beaches

A shark attack targeting a lifeguard was reported off the Atlantic coast of Long Island, New York, on Sunday, July 3.

Although the victim survived, he sustained wounds on his body and was taken to a local hospital.

The marine animal attack led to the closure of a popular beach in the area, as well as other two New York beaches nearby.

In addition, local authorities increased other safety measures, such as shark patrol operations off the New York coast.

The incident is one of the many cases of rare, yet increasing shark attacks in the East Coast of the United States in recent years. The trend has led to a myriad of theories pointing to climate and ecological factors related to the shark attacks.

The Long Island incident occurred just when the Atlantic waters were starting to get warm again.

This is the case for the Northeast region, as it recently underwent a rollercoaster of changing weather from severe thunderstorms to extreme heat.

However, the warm weather is reportedly not surprising as the United States has entered its summer season approximately two weeks ago.

Various research had pointed out that the ongoing climate crisis is pushing great white sharks and other shark species worldwide to traverse into new waters.

This is mainly due to ocean warming caused by climate change and global warming.

In addition, previous studies also linked the sharks' habitat loss and loss of prey to be a driving force.

New York Shark Attack

Lifeguard Zach Gallo was reportedly playing the role of a victim during an emergency exercise when a 4 to 5 foot long shark bit him in his chest and right hand in the waters off Smith Point Beach, facing the Atlantic Ocean.

Steve Ballone, a top official from the Suffolk County, said Gallo was able to walk out alive from the water and was bandaged before he was taken to the hospital, as cited by The Guardian.

Safety Measures

In spite of the non-lethal animal attack, local officials closed the Smith Point Beach and another one to the east, saying it is due to dangerous marine activity, as cited by the UK media agency.

The officials also vowed to step up beach patrols, which includes the newly formed "shark patrol."

The patrol was created after a fisherman previously spotted 10-foot Mako shark off the Long Island coast in May, as previously reported by CBS News and other US media outlets.

Spatial Shift

In a study published in the journal Scientific Reports in February 2021, scientists found that the North Pacific warming shifts a young population of marine apex predators called juvenile white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) in the waters of central California.

The scientists claimed tht such spatial shift is causing a wide-range of potential conflicts, including against commercial fisheries and public safety concerns.

US Shark Attacks

In total, there have been 12 shark attacks in the state of New York alone as of Monday, July 4, according to the International Shark Attack File (ISAF) database curated by the Florida Museum.

The largest number of related cases across the US has been recorded in Florida with a total of 896 shark attacks, followed by Hawaii with 182, and California with 132 attacks.