Greg Wilfert, a lifeguard at Scarborough Beach State Park in Maine, had a terrifying encounter with a great white shark on Saturday afternoon. Wilfert, who has over five decades of experience as a lifeguard, was using a rescue torpedo in the water when the shark grabbed the flotation device and pulled him underwater.

Shark Encounter Details

Wilfert was pulled about 5 to 6 feet down before he was able to free himself from the strap that was attached to the rescue torpedo. Although he did not see the shark, Wilfert knew that it was what pulled on his flotation device. "There’s no fish that’s going to do that," Wilfert said. "It has to be a big fish or a shark. It had to be the shark."

Wilfert was able to swim safely back to shore and get out of the water without further incident. A bystander told Scarborough officials that they saw the rescue torpedo come up about 6 to 8 feet out of the water, shortly after Wilfert had begun swimming back toward shore.

According to officials, the reported shark activity and circumstances surrounding the encounter are very consistent with other activity they have seen. The activity and circumstances have also been reviewed and corroborated by New England Aquarium shark expert John Chisholm. Wilfert told sister station WMTW that there have been more than a dozen shark sightings in the past few days.

Beach Safety Measures

Scarborough Beach State Park was closed to swimming for about an hour following the encounter, as lifeguards and public safety personnel assessed the situation and monitored the surrounding waters. The park now has lifeguards closer to the shore to survey the water, a jet ski going across the ocean, and a drone flying overhead. Guests are also only allowed to go waist-deep into the ocean.

Original reporting: 40/29 / KHBS (NW Arkansas) — read the source article.