THE AMERICA ONE NEWS
Jun 5, 2025  |  
0
 | Remer,MN
Sponsor:  QWIKET 
Sponsor:  QWIKET 
Sponsor:  QWIKET: Elevate your fantasy game! Interactive Sports Knowledge.
Sponsor:  QWIKET: Elevate your fantasy game! Interactive Sports Knowledge and Reasoning Support for Fantasy Sports and Betting Enthusiasts.
back  
topic
NY Post
New York Post
9 Aug 2023


NextImg:Rockaway Beach reopens for swimming after shark attack, as NYC officials announce use of drones to scan waters

Rockaway Beach re-opened for swimming on Wednesday – two days after a swimmer was attacked by a shark there – as the FDNY and NYPD announced they are using drones to scan the waters for shark activity. 

The city Parks Department confirmed late Wednesday morning that the beach was open – after it was closed off “as a safety precaution” on Tuesday. 

Top FDNY and NYPD officials said that they were using drones to monitor for sharks at Rockaway Beach and other locations.

“The plan is this: that every morning before the beaches open, we will fly drones,” FDNY First Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer said at the beach Wednesday, adding fire and police boats would also be scanning the water.

“During that time before opening, if we spot a shark, then we’ll make a decision to close the beach,” Pfeifer said.

The fire department’s drones are tasked with scanning for shark activity along a 10-mile stretch of beach in the Rockaways, during the swimming season. 

Top FDNY and NYPD officials confirmed that they were using drones to monitor for sharks at Rockaway Beach and other locations, following the Monday shark attack.
James Messerschmidt for NY Post

“We will also keep the drones up in the air and marine units out in the water during the day while swimmers are swimming to make sure we don’t see any sharks, and we will keep, after hours, those same drones in the air to provide safety,” Pfeifer said.

The NYPD, which has a larger fleet of drones, is flying in the Rockaways, Coney Island, Orchard Beach and is working on bringing teams to Staten Island as well, Inspector Frank DiGiacomo said.

“We’re going to scan for sharks, and other things also,” the police official said. “We’re also looking for distressed swimmers, any crime – whatever a drone can help us with, that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

One of the drones is seen in the sky above Rockaway Beach, monitoring for shark activity.

The FDNY’s drones are tasked with scanning for shark activity along a 10-mile stretch of beach in the Rockaways. 
James Messerschmidt for NY Post

The drones will also help to monitor for schools of fish that sharks are often attracted to, Iris Rodriguez-Rosa, First Deputy Commissioner of the city Parks Department, told reporters. 

“Well, we know something’s happening and we call that climate change,” Pfiefer told reporters. “The waters are a lot warmer. They’re also a lot cleaner, so we’re getting schools of fish there.”

Drones detected a potential sighting of a single shark on Rockaway Beach around 11:15 a.m. Tuesday, but “of course since we had the beaches closed, it was fine,” Rodriguez-Rosa noted. 

“We haven’t seen anything since that,” the commissioner added. 

FDNY First Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer speaks at the Wednesday morning press conference.

Drones and boats will also monitor the water for sharks during swimming hours, FDNY First Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer said.
James Messerschmidt for NY Post

Less than 24 hours earlier – shortly before 6 p.m. Monday – Tatyana Koltunyuk, 65, was attacked by a shark off the shore near Beach 59th Street, sources said.

She lost a large chunk of her left leg, above the knee – “approximately 20 pounds of flesh” – according to sources and a photo of her injury. 

Lifeguards spotted her screaming for help in the water — and pulled her to shore, where she was given first aid.

First Deputy Commissioner of the city Parks Department, Iris Rodriguez-Rosa, FDNY First Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer and NYPD Inspector Frank DiGiacomo speak at the Wednesday press conference.

The NYPD has a larger fleet of drones that is monitoring the Rockaways, Coney Island and Orchard Beach for sharks.
James Messerschmidt for NY Post

A tourniquet was also applied to her leg to help stem the bleeding before first responders arrived.

Koltunyuk, a Ukrainian immigrant living in Astoria, was taken to Jamaica Hospital, where staff said she was in stable but critical condition Tuesday.

Koltunyuk's injury.

Koltunyuk is believed to have lost 20 pounds of flesh in the attack.
NY Post

Tatyana Koltunyuk.

Tatyana Koltunyuk, 65, is originally from Ukraine.
Facebook/Tatyana Koltunyuk

The shark attack is believed to be the first at Rockaway Beach since 1953. A surfer did report a possible shark bite there in September 2017, but experts said his wound was more likely caused by something else.