08/23/2023 Kayak Pebble Beach in San Mateo County California

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Kayaker’s close encounter with shark closes Bay Area beach

A shark bit a fisherman’s kayak off Pebble Beach in San Mateo County on Tuesday, knocking the 19-year-old out of the vessel and forcing him to swim to shore, prompting a 48-hour closure of the beach, officials said.

Around 1 p.m., a dispatcher received a report that a shark had bitten into the middle of the fisherman’s kayak between Bean Hollow State Beach and Pebble Beach, about 500 feet offshore, California Department of Parks and Recreation spokesperson Doug Johnson said in an email. The San Mateo County resident was not injured and swam safely back to shore, he said.

Park officials have not recovered the kayak, Johnson said, and believe it is still floating offshore. As a result, officials have been unable to confirm the type of shark that exhibited the aggressive behavior, though they suspect it was a great white.

Access to the water at both beaches was closed for 48 hours, 1 mile in each direction from where the incident occurred, Johnson said. State officials also notified the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the California State University Long Beach shark lab about the incident.


https://www.sfchronicle.com