WELLFLEET, Mass. — Lifeguards along the Cape Cod National Seashore say shark activity is picking up. They say they have had to close the water multiple times at some of their beaches.
At Marconi Beach in Wellfleet — the purple shark flag is flying and people say they are taking notice. Hannah Nauthon says her habits have changed. “I feel like as I have gotten older now, I’m a little more hesitant,” said Nauthon. 13-year-old Juliet Kappel was with her mother and brother on vacation from Pennsylvania. “I sometimes get scared of the sharks,” said Kappel.
Gordon Miller is the North District Supervisory Lifeguard at Cape Cod National Seashore. “Last week, in a three-hour period we saw three sharks,” said Miller. Lifeguards now get live information and don’t allow people in the water for an hour when there is shark activity. “They don’t sit in one place. They are in constant motion. So within an hour, they could be a mile away,” said Miller.
The sharks are also making appearances in Cape Cod Bay. Captain Don Parker runs Prime Rate Sportfishing and he says they had an encounter about three miles off of Dennis. “It came right across the front and just flipped right over,” said Parker. Captain Don Parker says his crew had an encounter that left their catch with a huge bite mark. “It had the striper in its mouth and it took off stripping my line so I sped the boat up and tried to catch up to it,” said Parker. “We reeled it up and it was just the head.”
The last shark fatality along the Cape was five years ago this summer. Experts say people have become much more aware. “I just don’t go above my waist. I play it safe,” said Naughton.
The Cape Cod National Seashore says typically they see their highest shark activity in mid-August through early September.
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