Shark bite reported in Hilton Head Island waters Monday afternoon, beach patrol says
A beachgoer was treated for minor injuries after a likely shark bite at a Sea Pines beach Monday, marking Hilton Head’s first reported shark encounter of the season.
The bite occurred shortly after noon in the waters off Beach Marker 26, located between Surf Scoter Road and Snowy Egret Road in the Sea Pines resort community. By the time mobile beach patrol units arrived, the injured female had removed herself from the water and “had the bleeding under control,” said Mike Wagner, a spokesperson for Shore Beach Service.
Wagner would not say how old the victim was, whether she was a vacationer or how deep she had been swimming at the time of the attack. She did not wish to be transported to the hospital by EMS crews, he said.
Shore Beach Services personnel cleared the surrounding waters for about 30 minutes following the bite, Wagner said, later reopening the beach after swimming was deemed safe. Without any lifeguard stands in the immediate area, it was unclear what type of shark had bitten the female.
“When the guards see (sharks) they don’t necessarily know what type it is because you’re usually seeing it very quickly and not usually super close in,” Wagner previously told The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette. All of the approximately 80 lifeguards staffed by the privately owned beach patrol service are trained to monitor the waters for sharks and provide medical care in the event of an attack.
Officials reported only one shark attack in 2023, when a shark bit a 60-year-old man’s foot in Sea Pines waters in late July. He was taken to Hilton Head Hospital for treatment of the bite wound.
