People are flocking to the beaches to cool off, as expected. But it’s not just an increase of people in the water, there seems to be an increase in shark sightings too.
NBC 7 spoke with a paddleboarder who recorded video of his close encounter Saturday, with a shark. Andy Kubik said he has seen dozens of sharks over the last few summers. NBC 7 has reported that the shark labs at Cal State Long Beach and the University of Minnesota reported great white shark nurseries have shifted south along Torrey Pines, Solana Beach and other areas.
On Saturday Kubik recorded video on his GoPro camera strapped to his paddle.
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“Pretty much guaranteed to see one anytime you paddle down there in the morning or the afternoon. Yesterday I saw probably around seven of them. Several fins out of the water,” said Kubik.
None of them have ever been aggressive, he told NBC 7.
“Not really an open water swimmer. If I was, I might be a little more concerned,” Kubik added.
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He takes his kids out there with him.
“We did see a pretty big fin one time. It spooked him to paddle back to the beach but he came back out and realized that there’s nothing to be afraid of,” said Kubik.
The heat wave has no doubt sent more people to the water the last few days.
“The water is beautiful, maybe 75 degrees,” said one surfer.
A boogieboarder that had just come in from the water didn’t seem too concerned.
“It’s their territory so, if they’re here they’re here,” she said.
There have been shark attacks in San Diego, but the number of incidents remains low. At times, lifeguards will post warnings.
Kubik believes there are several reasons why he spots the sharks so frequently.
“There’s more in the area, the fact that’s there more people standup paddle boarding, that’s a little bit more of a recent sport and you have all these drones,” said Kubik.
