Beach closings, openings mount with shark sightings

Sightings of several large sharks prompted lifeguards at Sunset Beach to engage in a sort of “dance” with the marine mammals by repeatedly closing and opening the beach this week.

The water was declared safe and open to people at 11 a.m. Tuesday, following a closure Monday at about 3:40 p.m.

The beach was also closed Sunday afternoon through Monday morning while officials looked for the three 10-to-12-foot great white sharks.

“We’re doing kind of like a musical chair dance,” said Huntington Beach marine safety Lt. Claude Panis. “Right now, we’re in the clear.”

He said the beach is closed any time a shark longer than 10 feet is spotted.

No one was injured and the sharks showed no signs of aggressive behavior.

The closures came about a week after a 52-year-old woman was attacked by a shark while swimming off Newport Beach.

A helicopter crew from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department spotted the sharks about 2 p.m. Sunday near Anderson Street in Huntington Beach, Panis said.

Sunset Beach, which is in Huntington Beach, and the adjoining Surfside Beach in Seal Beach were closed to swimmers and surfers Sunday through 10:30 a.m. Monday.

“It’s a precaution due to the size of the sharks and potential for aggressive behavior,” said Michael Diller, a lifeguard and beach supervisor in Seal Beach.

Matt Hamilton is a writer with the Los Angeles Times. Times Community News staff writer Bryce Alderton also contributed to this report.