A lifeguard in Scarborough, Maine, was dragged under water by a great white shark while swimming at a state beach on Saturday, officials said.
The lifeguard, who was not identified, was using a torpedo rescue buoy around 1 p.m. roughly 50 yards from the shore at Scarborough Beach State Park when the shark pulled him by the buoy about six feet underwater, police said.
After freeing himself from the torpedo’s strap, the lifeguard was able to return to the surface and swim to shore with no injuries, Scarborough Police Marine Resource Officer Daryen Granata said in an interview.
A bystander reported seeing the torpedo buoy shoot about eight feet out of the water after it was released by the shark, officials said.
The beach was closed to swimmers for roughly one hour.
The incident was reviewed and verified as white shark activity by John Chisholm, an expert with the New England Aquarium.
The close encounter comes as officials have noted a “significant number of white sharks,” in the waters off Scarborough Beach State Park and Higgins Beach, including close to shore and in sandbar areas, police said.
On Friday night, six white sharks were spotted off the same beach, according to the Sharktivity, a tracker app that Chisholm helps run. A small great white was also seen in the area Friday afternoon.
Public safety officials said that beachgoers should be aware of the increase in shark sightings and avoid swimming alone, or near schools of fish, seals, or bird feeding areas. Beachgoers should pay close attention to beach advisories and heed lifeguard instructions.
Bryan Hecht can be reached at bryan.hecht@globe.com. Follow him on Instagram @bhechtjournalism.