Swim Lessons to Continue At Oyster Pond in Chatham

CHATHAM – Swim lessons in Chatham will continue to be held at Oyster Pond Beach this summer.

Selectmen asked the recreation commission to consider a move of the swimming lessons to Schoolhouse Pond amid concerns over the presence of seals which attract sharks.

The commission unanimously dismissed the idea due to a lack of seal data, and other challenges that would reduce the quality of the program.

Selectmen asked the Parks and Recreation Department to consider the move as the installation of possible shark barriers at Oyster Pond Beach seem unlikely this season.

The town did not receive any responses after issuing a request for proposals for shark mitigation systems at Oyster Pond Beach, including netting or electronic devices.

The request for proposals follows a summer season which include two shark attacks off the Outer Cape. In August, a New York man was attacked off Long Nook Beach in Truro. A Revere man was killed from injuries suffered during an attack in September off Newcomb Hollow Beach in Wellfleet.

Parks & Recreation Director Dan Tobin said Schoolhouse Pond is not an ideal location for the lessons due to limited parking and a lack of beach space.

The commission also cited a lack of shark sightings in the Stage Harbor area up into Oyster Pond.

Recreation Commission chair Meredith Fry said banning the lessons at Oyster Pond sends a message of fear.

“It’s a mixed message because we are allowing swimming there at a guarded beach – saltwater pond, but it’s okay for us to swim there but not have swimming lessons there,” she said.

Fry also said there are not a lot of seals hanging out on the float at Oyster Pond Beach, and that more data needs to be collected.

“We don’t want to send a message of panic to the town,” Fry said.

Resident Elaine Gibbs expressed concerns about allowing swimming at Oyster Pond Beach.

Gibbs said seals are being seen in greater numbers and that many shark safety warnings can apply to Oyster Pond conditions.

“We know that sharks only need four or five feet of water to swim in undetected from the surface,” she said. “At high tide they could be within feet of the beach.”

Gibbs said the people in town are given mixed messages when it comes to shark safety.

“The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy brochure that is going to be distributed all over town says to be aware as sharks hunt for seals in shallow water, avoid areas where seals are present, avoid areas where schools of fish are visible, avoid murky or low visibility water, and limit splashing. Every single one of those conditions applies to Oyster Pond.”

The recreation commission is asking lifeguards to complete daily monitoring of seals at the beach.

“We will be recording such data as dates, times, tides and locations so that we could have more information to evaluate in reviewing this situation going forward,” Tobin said.