iStockphoto
Great white shark swimming in the ocean
Maine has historically not been a hot spot for shark attacks, as those animals prefer warmer waters than its coastline normally offers. However, there’s been a spike in sightings this summer, and one lifeguard believes a great white was at the center of a harrowing incident that left him swimming for the shore as quickly as he could.
The International Shark Attack File has done an impressive job keeping tabs on every unprovoked incident recorded in the United States stretching back to 1837.
You probably won’t be surprised to learn Florida currently leads the way on that front with a grand total of 828 attacks chronicled in the waters off its approximately 1,350 miles of general coastline.
Maine, on the other hand, hadn’t had a single one until a porbeagle shark chomped down on a diver’s camera in 2010. A decade later, it recorded its first fatality, as a 63-year-old woman from New York City was killed after she was bitten by a great white off Bailey Island in the summer of 2020.
Shark attacks tend to be few and far between in Maine due to the temperature of its water (most species don’t feel a need to wander north of Massachusetts, where six unprovoked incidents have unfolded over the years). However, there’s recently been a spike in activity that resulted in a longtime lifeguard getting quite the scare.
A lifeguard believes a great white shark was responsible for dragging him under the water off a beach in Maine
Scarborough is a popular destination for tourists and locals alike thanks to its proximity to Portland (it’s an approximately 20-minute drive south of Maine’s biggest city), and you usually don’t have to worry about encountering a shark in its waters.
However, that was not the case when more than half a dozen great whites were spotted off the shores of Pine Point Beach last week, and it would appear at least one of them swam over to the adjacent Scarborough Beach based on what unfolded there on Saturday.
According to WHDH, Greg Wilfert, a 71-year-old lifeguard who’s been working at Scarborough Beach for 55 years, headed into the water off of it around 1 P.M when he was suddenly dragged five to six feet under the surface.
He initially thought the rescue buoy strapped to him had gotten caught in the propeller of a boat, but he quickly deduced the flotation device had been chomped down on by a shark (one he believes was a great white) that mistook it for food.
Wilfert was able to unhook the buoy (which a witness on the shore said flew upwards of eight feet above the water when the shark let it go) and made his way back to shore as quickly as he could, noting, “I could’ve beaten Michael Phelps.”
The beach was shut down for an hour, and drones and jet skis were deployed to keep tabs on the situation when people were allowed back in the water. However, anyone willing to brave it was limited to wading up to their waist.