17-year-old lifeguard bitten by shark during training off Ocean Beach on Fire Island

OCEAN Beach front, N.Y. — A Prolonged Island lifeguard is recovering following remaining bitten by a shark. 

It happened in the vicinity of Ocean Beach on Hearth Island.

Very first-year lifeguard John Mullins is donning a number of new battle scars. The 17-12 months-outdated was in the middle of lifeguard teaching Thursday morning when he felt one thing weird.

“The tooth have been, like, within my skin, and when I pulled my foot out, it variety of just felt like a scrape, like a rake going up my foot,” Mullins told CBS2’s Alecia Reid.

The soaring senior shortly uncovered out he’d been bitten by a shark. When education, he had the task of enjoying the target, treading water although waiting for fellow lifeguards to “rescue” him, not knowing how close he was to true hazard.

“We under no circumstances count on to be attacked even though we’re teaching, but they taken care of it perfectly,” Mullins said.

Mullins says he was about 150 yards from shore when the assault transpired.

An avid swimmer who’s put in time in the ocean his whole everyday living, the teen now has five stitches and a limp. He’ll be out of work till he can begin getting his toes soaked all over again.

“The initially time heading back out to be the target is unquestionably going to be scary, but I really should be Ok,” Mullins said.

Mullins says his stitches will be taken out in about 10 days. Simply because he is still limping, he might need to have a minimal more time just before he returns to lifeguard responsibility, but he claims one particular detail is for confident — he will undoubtedly be again.

This follows an additional sighting Wednesday by Davis Park and an attack on a further lifeguard very last Saturday at Smith Point Beach front. 

For protection causes, beachgoers courageous enough to enter the water are only authorized to go a selected length, and to alert readers of the possible threat, all Fire Island beach locations will exhibit pink flags around beach front indications and purple flags in lifeguard areas.

Look at Elijah Westbrook’s report


Lifeguard bitten by shark off Fireplace Island

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CBS2’s Elijah Westbrook caught up with people as they waited for the 9 a.m. ferry certain for Fireplace Island. With a different enjoyable weekend ahead, beachgoers like Nick Fortugno are headed to the island in hopes of a excellent time.

“It’s possible I will have some buddies occur down and dangle out,” Fortugno told Westbrook. 

He mentioned he is being careful right after several shark sightings and attacks this thirty day period. At the very least 3 claimed incidents have occurred due to the fact the commence of July. 

“Just be safe and sound, never get any likelihood that you don’t want to consider, and get pleasure from the summer time,” he stated.

It occurred just times immediately after a lifeguard at Smith Stage Beach front was bitten by a shark although conducting a teaching work out with fellow lifeguards. 

“I strike the shark 3 instances, I went boom growth increase. I guess in the third a person, it spun back and it can be tail hit me in the upper body,” Zachari Gallo explained to CBS2’s Thalia Perez.

Immediately after listening to tales like that, beachgoers say they fully grasp why the safeguards are staying place in spot and know security is quantity a person. 

“I do not think anybody would be happy to see a shark, right?” a single gentleman explained. 

The commissioner of parks for Suffolk County suggests officers are holding a vigilant eye on the water from previously mentioned with condition-of-the-art machines, like drones

“We have them out there with distinctive applications, including Jet Skis, kayaks, surf boards, paddle boards and binoculars on land,” Commissioner Jason Smagin claimed. 

Suffolk County Government Steve Bellone claims lifeguards are consistently on the lookout for sharks.

“We are possessing our lifeguards out on paddle boards, we have deployed and will continue where by needed drone technology, and we also have a Jet Ski that we make use of,” he stated.

Officers say shark sighting are raising thanks to hotter waters, which have sent them north before than normal. 

Your likelihood of becoming attacked and killed by a shark in the United States is just one in 3.7 million, in accordance to National Geographic.