Shark Spotted Off Martha's Vineyard Interrupts Swimming
EDGARTOWN, Mass. (AP) — Lifeguards have whistled in swimmers off the coast of Martha's Vineyard after beachgoers reported sightings of a shark only about 5 feet from shore.
Some suspected the animal spotted Wednesday close to the Massachusetts coast was a hammerhead shark, about 10-feet-long.
But John Chisholm, a state marine fisheries biologist, says he doubts that because it would be out of the ordinary for a hammerhead to swim so close to shore.
Swimmers were advised to stay out of the water at nearby beaches.
Jessica McGroarty, parks administrator for Edgartown, says swimming was first suspended for about an hour and a half after a spotter pilot confirmed the presence of the shark.
After the water was reopened to swimmers, it was closed again for a half-hour following a second sighting.
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