It's NOT safe to go into the water in Benidorm! Holiday beachgoers flee after 8ft blue SHARK is spotted in the shallows

  • Swimmers rushed to the shore after the blue shark appeared by Poniete Beach
  • Video footage shows beachgoers watching on as the shark swam in waters
  • The shark was then seen thrashing wildly from side to side and its body was almost entirely out of the water at one stageHolidaymakers relaxing on a beach in Benidorm were forced to flee after an eight-foot long blue shark was spotted in the shallow waters.

    Horrified swimmers rushed to the shore after the huge shark appeared in the sea by Poniente Beach, just yards away from them. 

    Video footage shows terrified beachgoers watching on as the blue shark swam in the shallow waters, with its fin clearly visible. The creature was then seen thrashing wildly from side to side and its body was almost entirely out of the water as it touched the sand. 

    Police officers who were called to the scene on Thursday can be heard telling the beachgoers to stand back, before the shark eventually swam back into the shallow waters. Horrified British swimmers rushed to the shore after the huge shark appeared in the sea by Poniente Beach, in Benidorm just yards away from them

    Horrified British swimmers rushed to the shore after the huge shark appeared in the sea by Poniente Beach, in Benidorm just yards away from them

    Local police officers sent a helicopter and two police boats, and officers could be seen watching the shark from the vessels. Above: Coast guards wrestle with the blue shark

    Local police officers sent a helicopter and two police boats, and officers could be seen watching the shark from the vessels. Above: Coast guards wrestle with the blue shark

    Police officers who were called to the scene on Thursday can be heard telling the beachgoers to stand back, before the shark eventually swam back into the shallow waters

    Police officers who were called to the scene on Thursday can be heard telling the beachgoers to stand back, before the shark eventually swam back into the shallow waters

    British tourist Christine Kettley, 36, who was sunbathing with her family when she spotted the shark, told The Sun: 'This shark was massive, it was about 8ft long and jerking around in the water.'

    The mother-of-three added: 'You wouldn't want to go anywhere near it or make it angry as it was large enough to cause someone serious injury. 

    'It was just swimming around where everyone had been paddling. 

    'Police and lifeguards rushed to the beach and immediately started getting people out of the water.'Christine, who is from Great Dunmow in Essex, UK, added: 'It's been going up and down the coast all day and has come in really close to the beach.'

    Local police officers sent a helicopter and two police boats, and officers could be seen watching the shark from the vessels. Others had formed a line on the beach to block holidaymakers from getting close to the shark. 

    Blue sharks can grow to 13ft and 400lbs and are found in oceans across the world, especially the Atlantic but they do venture into British waters during the summer months.

    Blue sharks, which rarely attack humans, are registered as near threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

    Last month, a British postman came face-to-face with a huge blue shark while snorkelling off the coast of Cornwall.   

    Martin Yelland, 38, was diving just off the coast of Penzance when the blue shark swam straight towards him.

    It stuck around for about an hour, before being scared off by a pod of 80 dolphins. Mr Yelland, who lives in St Erth, Cornwall, takes wildlife photographs in his spare time. He said: 'It was a really memorable encounter.

    'I was apprehensive the evening before the shark snorkel, but once I saw the shark I was just amped to get in the water as they were so graceful and inquisitive.

    'At no stage did I feel frightened, the sharks were curious but in no way aggressive.'

    He added: 'The blue sharks come so close you sometimes need to get out of their way, as we were told never to touch them.'

    Widespread fishing poses a risk to the population of blue sharks although the sharks' wide range buffers it from the effect of heavy fishing pressure. Despite this, population declines have been noted. 

    Its flesh is not highly valued but its fins are, meaning many Blue Sharks are finned at sea and subsequently discarded.

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