Recent Shark Encounters Have New Yorkers Fearing They May Be Experiencing The Plot of ‘Jaws’ In Real Life

Long Island might need a bigger boat this 4th of July.

The popular 1975 movie Jaws stirred a fear of the ocean in people who didn’t even live near a beach. It was the blueprint for the bloodthirsty-killer-shark trope that has since proliferated the market, and is still quoted whenever shark attacks take place.

The movie, centered around the New York coast, follows a group of men as they attempt to hunt down Bruce, a 25-foot shark that has been terrorizing their beachfront community.

While of course Jaws was a fictional story created to strike a fear of the deep sea, it seems as though we are having a…suspiciously similar set of events happening on the shores of Long Island, NY.

Just last week, a shark attack was reported on the coast of Jones Beach, a very popular summer destination for both locals and travelers. Because the attack occurred right before a holiday break, the dangerous encounter has sparked a lot of media attention.

The 20-year woman that was bitten was apparently surfing when she suffered lacerations on her left leg and foot from an unidentified animal. Thankfully, the injuries were minor and not life threatening. While a drone search for dangerous marine life turned up empty handed, state officials were able to conclude that the attack was executed by a young sand tiger shark.

This wasn’t the only shark encounter on the New York shore, though. A TikTok’er posted their encounter last week as well. The video pictures the girls chatting in the ocean before a shark splashes right up next to them, causing the pair to rush out of the way in fear. The text overlaying the video reads,

“When you’re in the middle of filming and almost get eaten by a shark”.

@deadmomsclubpod

Not a shark pulling up on us mid-rant #shark #longisland #newyork

♬ original sound – DMC

It definitely is a scary situation to be in when you’re still so close to the shore.

Another encounter on the Long Island shore was captured by TikTok user @therealauntieshell. In the video you can see a group of beachgoers taking pictures with a sand tiger shark that swam too close to the shore. Of course, the video couldn’t be complete without the Jaws theme song playing in the background.

@therealauntieshell

Sharky Shark Robert Moses Field 4 West Islip, NY 6/29/25 #comegetsome #longislandbeaches #robertmosesbeach #jaws #sandshark

♬ Jaws (Main Theme) – The Theme System

While not the legendary 25-foot human-hunting great white from the movie, it seems as though sand tiger sharks are the culprit for these close calls along the New York coast. The most jarring parallels we can draw from these recent encounters to the movie Jaws is that, in both cases, the attacks occurred right before the 4th of July—a weekend when people flock to the nearest beaches to celebrate.

With the recent reported encounters, Long Island officials have stated that they plan to increase safety measures for the beach traffic they are predicting on July 4th, implementing drone and helicopter patrol to monitor the water and ensure beachgoer safety.

Unprovoked shark attacks are typically very rare. The only reason we hear about them as often as we do is because of public fascination. So, while enjoying your holiday weekend, don’t stress too much about what’s lurking below—unless of course you hear “dun dun… dun dun… dun dun”.

Then you should probably get out of the water.The post Recent Shark Encounters Have New Yorkers Fearing They May Be Experiencing The Plot of ‘Jaws’ In Real Life first appeared on Whiskey Riff.