Maine Lifeguard Pulled Underwater by Shark Off Scarborough
Greg Wilfert says he was dragged about 5 feet under after a shark grabbed his rescue buoy, one of at least a dozen sharks spotted near the beach in a week.
A lifeguard in Maine says he "started swimming like hell" after a shark grabbed his rescue buoy and pulled him underwater off Scarborough Beach on Saturday.
Greg Wilfert said his first thought was that he had been caught in a boat propeller.
"'Cause that's the only thing I could think of until I realized there was no boat," he said.
Wilfert said he was dragged about 5 feet below the surface before he freed himself and reached shore unharmed.
"It was frightening," he said. "I'm not going to deny that."
More sightings close to shore
Officials along the East Coast say sharks are appearing closer to shore, in places they do not usually frequent. Since last week, at least a dozen sharks have been spotted near popular beaches in the area of Wilfert's encounter, according to Daryen Granata, Scarborough's marine resources officer.
"Usually we'll see one or two here and there. This is a large volume, larger than I've seen, and I've worked this area for 30-plus years," Granata said.
Experts say the trend coincides with conservation efforts that have increased marine life populations in recent years.
"We're gonna see more of everything, including more sharks," said Chris Fischer, founder of OCEARCH, a nonprofit that catches, tags and collects data from sharks before releasing them.
"It means just try to be a little bit more aware of what's going on in the environment around you," Fischer said. "You see a lot of life, steer clear of that."
Encounters remain rare. The International Shark Attack File reported 25 unprovoked bites last year.
This article was produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI), in accordance with our editorial policy.
