(NewsNation) — A shark attacked a 46-year-old man in Del Mar, California, prompting lifeguards to close beaches for swimming and surfing in the area.
According to the City of Del Mar, the incident happened around 9 a.m. just 100 yards offshore. The swimmer was participating in regular training with about a dozen other swimmers when a shark bit him in the torso, left arm and hand. The injuries are described as non-life-threatening, and the swimmer is expected to survive.
This comes as a warning system that alerts swimmers about nearby sharks is set to go offline this summer if lawmakers in Sacramento, California, don’t approve more money for research at Cal State Long Beach.
The attack has safety experts reminding beachgoers to heed local warnings as the summer vacation season gets underway. Warning signs are now up along the beach in Del Mar.
Still, unprovoked shark attacks are rare. In 2023, there were just two in California, with one being fatal. Florida usually has the highest number of incidents, with notable numbers also reported in Hawaii and South Carolina.
“It’s amazing the fact that we have so many people in the water around the sharks all the time and nothing happens. So obviously, accidents do happen, and that’s why they’re called ‘accidents,'” Dr. Chris Lowe, the director of Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach, told NewsNation.
“We can identify whether it’s a white shark or not by taking swabs of the wetsuit. In addition, we can take water samples and detect white shark DNA in the water,” Lowe explained.
Shark behavior is evolving due to warmer ocean temperatures worldwide, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The warmer water changes the metabolism of sharks, causing them to search for food more frequently.