Great white shark report closed Huntington Beach waters from Seapoint to the pier

A report of a great white shark circling offshore near Lifeguard Tower 16 prompted Huntington Beach Marine Safety to close the water from Seapoint Street to the Huntington Beach Pier on Tuesday, with the closure scheduled to run through 3 p.m. Wednesday, October 14.

The Huntington Beach Fire Department received the report from a foilboard surfer who saw the shark, estimated at 10 to 12 feet long, circling about 300 feet offshore near Tower 16 on Tuesday, October 13, ABC7 reported. The surfer was not injured, and no injuries were reported in connection with the sighting.

The Huntington Beach Pier from above. The pier marked the southern end of the roughly two-mile stretch of water closed after the shark report near Tower 16.

Don Ramey Logan, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Source

Marine Safety classified the reported circling as aggressive behavior under its shark response protocols, Fox Weather and The Inertia reported, citing the Fire Department. "As a precaution, the water is being closed from Seapoint to the Huntington Beach Pier, approximately one mile north and south of Tower 16," the Fire Department said, according to Fox Weather.

The closure covered roughly two miles of water. Beachgoers could remain on the sand but were told to stay out of the ocean, and Marine Safety personnel posted warning signs and notified beachgoers along the stretch. "Please follow all posted signs and instructions from lifeguards," the Fire Department said in its announcement, as reported by The Inertia.

The Huntington Beach shoreline and a lifeguard tower. Officials searched by drone, jet ski and rescue boat but could not independently confirm the sighting, and planned added patrols before reopening.

John Salatas, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Source

Officials searched the area by drone, jet ski and rescue boat but could not independently confirm the sighting, ABC7 reported. Marine safety officials said additional patrols were planned before the water reopened.

ABC7 reported that experts say shark sightings have increased in Southern California, potentially because warmer ocean temperatures are shifting shark movements northward, while noting that shark encounters resulting in bites remain rare.