‘REMAIN INTACT’

Shark Bites Teenage Surfer’s Toes During Fire Island Attack

The 15-year-old boy managed to swim to shore where he was helped by a member of the public.

A 15-year-old boy was attacked by a shark off the coast of Fire Island in the Atlantic Ocean on Monday afternoon, suffering bites to his left heel and toes. Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau officers responded to the scene at 5:20pm and learned that the victim had swam to shore under his own power, at which point a Good Samaritan provided medical assistance until authorities arrived. Taken to Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip, the surfer’s injuries were deemed not life-threatening; both the heel and the toe “remain intact,” according to Long Island Press. Last year, there were six shark attacks in the span of three weeks (two of them taking place on the same day) in Long Island beach waters, most of them off Fire Island, and the region has thus been on high alert for sharks in 2023.