Rockaway Beach reopens to swimmers after shark sightings
ROCKAWAY BEACH, Queens (WABC) -- Portions of Rockaway Beach temporarily closed to swimmers after NYPD drones spotted sharks in the water.
There were at least two shark sightings reported on Thursday afternoon.
The first shark sighting happened at Beach 86 Street at 1:20 p.m. and police closed the beach from 64th to 104th streets.
There was a second shark sighting at Beach 61, closing the beach to swimming from Beach 57 to Beach 81.
A third shark sighting was reported at Beach 81st just before 4 p.m., but was determined to be unfounded. It did, however, shut down a section of the beach for a while.
It's not clear if the separate shark sightings were of the same shark, or different ones.
"I don't know. It definitely could be different ones. Could be the same ones. Could be anything," said resident Patricia Labossier. "Once one person sees a shark everybody sees them."
Swimmers say they saw lifeguards sprinting into the water, but no one panicked.
"The lifeguards went in the water but I wasn't sure what it was. I thought someone drowned," said beachgoer Gaby C.
NewsCopter 7 was up in the sky capturing the NYPD aviation team searching for more sharks on the water.
The NYPD says their drones will continue to monitor the waters for any other shark sightings or swimmers in distress.
Officers and Parks Department officers on ATVs also patrolled the boardwalk and the beach, making sure everyone was out.
Few other details were released.
----------
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News
Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
