French Riviera beaches packed with British holidaymakers have been closed for swimming after a suspected shark was spotted circling in the water. The chilling alert was issued yesterday after lifeguards patrolling in a motorboat spotted a creature measuring more than seven feet long. Don't go into the water: French lifeguards scan the shoreline in Cagnes-sur-Mer yesterday. Red for danger: A lifeguard raises the alert flag in Cagnes-sur-Mer yesterday after the mysterious creature was spotted.
As swimmers ran out of the warm Mediterranean, the scenes resembled those in the famous movie Jaws, which is about a man-eating white shark which terrorises a holiday island on the east coast of America. Laurent-du-Var, as people in boats telephoned warnings about the suspected shark, which had a large dorsal fin and a white belly. It was swimming some feet off the coast, prompting fears that it might be wounded or ill, and might start attacking holidaymakers.
But Veronique Vienet, chief veterinary officer for the area, underplayed the fears, saying that the creature might actually be a large dolphin. She pointed to the fact that there has only been one fatal shark attack in French coastal waters since the s.
In July last year there was another shark scare at Antibes, but the creature turned out to be a harmeless ocean sunfish which only eats jellyfish. It is high season on the Riviera at the moment, meaning beaches are packed out, often with Britons who are enjoying the school holidays in the South of France.
They were portrayed as sinister, hugely dangerous creatures, prompting anger among conservationists and wildlife groups.
