Within the past several days over the 4th of July weekend, numerous shark sightings along New York beaches have kept swimmers temporarily out of the water.

Officials say they have been monitoring the waters for sharks, including a stretch of Rockaway Beach in Queens.

The sightings have taken place several times since Thursday, including one on Sunday. Officials say FDNY drones spotted a shark at Beach 102nd Street at around 2:30 p.m. Per protocol, the beach was closed for one hour -- about one mile in each direction from the location where the shark was spotted, CBS News New York's Naveen Dhaliwal reported.

Rockaway Beach shark sightings

On Saturday at around 6 p.m., drone teams spotted a shark just 100 feet from swimmers near Beach 113. The sighting spanned Beach 113 Street to Beach 115.

The Office of Emergency Management quickly shut down the beach and alerted anyone in or near the water.

On Friday, there were two sightings at Rockaway Beach before noon, according to city officials. They say a shark was seen around 11:30 a.m. near Beach 32nd Street and another was reported at Beach 144th Street. A third was reported near Beach 30th Street, prompting a portion of the beach to close for an hour.

For now, the city says it will constantly patrol the beaches with drones to detect shark activity and distressed swimmers.

For swimmers, there has been an uneasy feeling of late.

"I feel like it's a risk you always take, but, you know, when when they say there's sharks in the water, then I'm definitely not going in," beach goer Dylan Lipscomb said.

Data shows shark attacks are very rare

Rockaway Beach was eventually reopened on Sunday. City officials said they would make any necessary closures as the day went on.

Data from 2024 shows shark attacks are rare, with only 28 unprovoked shark bites and one person killed in the United States last year. 

In late June, a woman was bitten in the waters off Jones Beach by what experts say was likely a juvenile sand tiger shark. 

• Shark
• Queens
• Rockaway Beach