A shark just achieved the ultimate mic drop on Wednesday, shutting down an entire beach after it bit a seal and then spit it up onto the sand right in front of beachgoers.
The shark chose an idyllic Eastham beach on Massachusetts’ Cape Cod for its stunt. After taking a bite out of the poor seal, people spotted the shark and lifeguards quickly ordered them to clear the shore as the water filled with blood.
Witnesses were understandably shocked: “It was almost like Jaws” and “it was pretty gruesome” were some statements captured in this WCVB write up.
The Chatham Shark Center posted photos from the attack on Thursday, taken by an intrepid beachgoer named Jennifer O’Leary, who said the attack happened around 10 feet from shore. Ominously, she didn’t see the shark, only the seal’s thrashing while in the throes of death: “I see seals everyday at Nauset Light and Coast Guard – dozens – I have never seen this happen before though,” she told the Daily Mail.
As a friendly warning to swimmers during the remainder of the summer, a National Park Service ranger warns people not to swim at dawn or dusk, go out too deep or linger at sand bars where sharks are more common. Oh, and if you can stay in a large group to maximize the chance that a shark will mistake your friend for a seal instead of you, then do that as well.
Happy swimming!