Greg Wilfert may have thought he has seen everything in his 55 years of being employed at a beach. However, he probably never anticipated being dragged beneath the waves by a great white shark. And even more scary, Wilfert might not have thought he would be alive to tell the tale afterward. Fortunately for the 71-year-old, he was able to escape the fearsome aquatic animal. The chilling incident took place at Scarborough Beach in Maine on Saturday, August 8. Greg Wilfert is a longtime lifeguard and Park Manager there.
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Wilfert Recalled His Close Encounter With the Brutal Beast
He spoke candidly to a Boston television station about the dreadful moments he experienced with the shark. Per WHDH, Wilfert shared, "I thought a boat had come by and grabbed my rescue can because I got pulled under, and I realized right away that it was not a boat, that it had to have been a great white. I just swam as fast as I could to the surface, and then I just was hoping it wasn't behind me."
He was yanked "five-to-six feet underwater," in the words of the television station. Wilfert was nevertheless able to make it safely to the shore and evade further contact with the shark.
The situation did not impact his sense of humor. Greg Wilfert said he was swimming so fast, he "could've beaten Michael Phelps." Phelps is an iconic Olympic swimmer with a gaggle of medals to his credit.
He Did His Duty as a Lifeguard
Wilfert wanted to keep everyone else safe. He reportedly advised people to leave the water and he also closed the beach briefly. In another move to protect the public, Wilfert uses drones and jet skis to watch the premises. That strategy assures that sharks get frightened away.
The Scarborough Harbormaster, Daryen Granata, observed, "There was a lot of bait around, a lot of bait fish, a lot of stripers - there's a lot of fish around." No wonder a shark was in the area! Even with the precautions taken, however, the threat was still very real.
Wilfert added, "We knew there was a presence around, but we had put up a drone and we hadn't seen them."
Wilfert Had Some Wise Cautionary Advice for Beach Lovers
Greg Wilfert issued this friendly warning. "There's a lot of beaches that we have around here that there's no lifeguards, and they have the presence of these great whites, and you need to take it seriously. I'm taking it seriously. I won't be swimming the buoys for a while."
