Yet another shark sighting was reported along the Jersey Shore today, this time near the 22nd Street beach at South Seaside Park Beach in Berkeley Township in Ocean County.
The day earlier, two shark fins were spotted a mile or so north and about 200 yards off the 11th Avenue beach in Seaside Park by Steven Ward of Burnt Hills, N.Y.
"Just saw a large fin and a large shadow beneath it," Ward told NBCNewYork.
Even as lifeguards were calling people out of the water, Ward said "I didn't care to get any closer, ankle depth was fine after that."
There were also shark sightings near Ocean Beach in Toms River. Last weekend, lifeguards spotted a shark fin much farther north in Monmouth Beach, and a week or so ago, Sea Girt lifeguards reported a shark sighting.
In Seaside Park, Beach Captain Joe Gomulka said in his 35 years of lifeguarding he had never closed a beach until Wednesday.
"This is the summer of a few more sharks than normal," Gomulka said.
While it was enough to keep Steven Ward out of the water for four hours, Brooklyn's Joanne Soffing, 52, had a different take.
Asked if she would get out with a shark sighting, she replied she would "stay in."
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"I look forward to this all year and a shark is not going to keep me out of the water," Soffing said.
When a reporter told her she was crazy, Soffing responded "Yes."
Earlier this month, Coast Guard officials issued a shark warning for the waters from South Jersey to Maine.
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