Great white shark comes within feet of swimmers off California coast

A 10-foot great white shark came within feet of swimmers off the Los Angeles coast, including children in the water, in footage captured by photographer Carlos Gauna from about a mile away. The swimmers appeared unaware of the shark’s presence as it moved close to shore, a scene that made the encounter feel as ordinary as a summer beach day and as abrupt as a warning siren.

The July 22 encounter drew attention because it showed how quickly a public beach can become a wildlife encounter. NBC News later posted the clip under the title “Great white shark seen within feet of swimmers off California,” and a separate NBC News video result described the animal as “stalking swimmers.” The shark was identified in local coverage as a great white, the species California wildlife officials call white sharks, or Carcharodon carcharias.

The larger risk picture is narrower than viral footage can suggest. Shark Stewards says the California Department of Fish and Wildlife estimates an average of 1.8 human-shark encounters, meaning bumps or bites, per year over the past two decades off the west coast of North America. Most sightings do not lead to attacks, but lifeguards and coastal officials still tell people to leave the water immediately if a shark is spotted, stay in groups, avoid dawn and dusk swims, and follow beach warnings.

California State Parks says not every beach along the state’s coastline is recommended for swimming or wading. Its hazard list is a reminder that sharks are only one part of the danger: large surf, cold water temperatures, backwash, sudden drop-offs, pounding shorebreak and dangerous rip currents all make the ocean less predictable than a pool or protected cove.

The reaction to this latest video also fits a pattern that has played out before. NBC News previously reported a 13-year-old boy attacked off an Encinitas beach in 2018, and NBC 7 San Diego later reported that DNA testing confirmed the shark was a great white and that the boy received 1,000 stitches for bites to his face, neck, shoulder and back. NBC News also reported in 2024 on a California shark-attack survivor recalling the attack and on a missing swimmer case after a suspected shark attack near Lovers Point. Against that backdrop, the latest close pass is less a spectacle than a reminder that California’s busiest beaches are still part of an active marine ecosystem.