A shark attacked a Long Island, New York, lifeguard while he was in the water, playing the victim of a shark attack in a training drill during the Fourth of July weekend.
The lifeguard, Zachary Gallo, 33, suffered bites on his hand and his chest, but was treated at a local hospital and then released.
Local authorities closed Smith Point Beach, and another one just to the east, after the attack “due to dangerous marine activity.” They reopened the beaches the next day.
The shark, four or five feet long, attacked Gallo about 10:15 on Sunday during a lifeguard training session. He was treading water, pretending to be injured after a shark attack.
The shark bit him in the chest and hand, but he fought if off with his bare hands, punching it until it let go. He swam to shore as other lifeguards came to his rescue, and walked out of the water on his own. Local EMT officers treated him immediately, and then took him to a local hospital.
County officials then closed the beach, and said they would increase beach patrols, including a new shark patrol with drones.
For his part, Gallo said he thought the shark was just curious, and was not trying to eat him. He has to stay out of work for ten days for his wounds to heal, but he told the New York Post that then “I’m looking forward to getting back in the water.”
Read more at https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/07/04/long-island-shark-attack-lifeguard/7802020001 and see the video below:
