Last Saturday, on October 17th, a great white shark leaped out of the water near Marina State Beach in California, capturing the attention of a woman who recorded the incident. The California State Parks issued a shark warning for the area as a result.
Local resident Erin King was enjoying the October sunshine on the beach when the unexpected happened.
She noticed three young women taking photos on the beach and offered to help them out.
“They were all very kind young ladies who insisted on taking a photo of me after I took one for them,” King told California’s KSBW television station.
As the girls were capturing the moment for King, a great white shark leaped out of the water behind her.
“The whole thing happened so fast. It was just a moment. So, we happened to see it, and I guess nobody else did,” King said.
California State Parks also confirmed to KSBW that the shark leaping out of the water incident at Marina State Beach occurred and pointed out that the timestamp on King’s video matches another video of the same event taken by a surfer.
“Considering her location at the time and the timestamp on her video matching the timestamp on a surfer’s video of the same event, it’s quite likely the same shark,” said California State Parks Chief Ranger Mike Dipper.
The organization issued a shark warning for Marina State Beach, explaining that autumn is a common time for great white sharks to appear along the Central Coast.
“October, which is in the fall, is typically when white sharks return and migrate to the Central Coast. So, please be extra cautious when surfing, swimming, or engaging in other water activities near the Central Coast at this time of the year,” Dipper said.
For King and the three young women, this rare encounter became a shared experience they will never forget.
“We’ve been inseparable ever since. We were just sitting there together, feeling like, oh my gosh, I can’t believe what just happened,” King said.
California State Parks stated that the shark warning will remain in effect until the weekend.
After the video was shared on Instagram, it received 70,000 likes, with one commenter saying, “She captured the best photo of the year!!”
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