TOH beaches briefly close amid shark sightings

The Town of Hempstead briefly closed some of its beaches in Point Lookout and Lido Beach this week, as a precaution following reported shark sightings.

On Wednesday, a town spokeswoman said that a thresher shark was sighted 30 yards off the shore at Nickerson Beach, shortly before 3 p.m. As a safety measure, the town closed the beach at Lido West Town Park.

On Thursday, two other shark sightings were reported, at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. All Town of Hempstead beaches closed briefly, until about 3 p.m. The spokeswoman said that in those instances, the animal sighted was actually a cownose ray, which was mistaken for a shark.