Overview

• A 20-year-old woman suffered minor lacerations to her left leg and foot on June 25 while wading at Jones Beach’s Central Mall beachfront and was treated and released from Nassau University Medical Center.
• New York State Department of Environmental Conservation experts and external biologists concluded the slashing bite pattern and sandy ocean floor point to a juvenile sand tiger shark as the culprit.
• Lifeguards initially suspended swimming while drones searched for dangerous marine life but found none, and the beach reopened June 26 under enhanced aerial and shoreline monitoring.
• Shark bites on Long Island remain rare, with only one reported incident in 2024 and five in 2023, despite proximity to known sand tiger shark nursery areas in the Great South Bay.
• Officials advise swimmers to avoid seals, murky water or fish schools, swim in groups, and stay close to shore to minimize the risk of future shark interactions.