In Rockaways, shark sightings - but no sharks

Shark!

Not really.

Lifeguards at Rockaway Beach in Queens emptied the water twice over the weekend because of reported shark sightings, but searches resulted in no findings of the ocean predators, authorities said Monday.

"As a precaution, when something is reported we clear the water and check," said Vickie Karp, a spokeswoman for the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, after the waters off Rockaway Beach were emptied once on Friday and again on Saturday after swimmers said they saw sharks. "But we have no confirmed reports of shark sightings."

About 10 a.m. Saturday, the beach was closed for 45 minutes to an hour while officials conducted their search. There also was a similar search on Friday, Karp said.

"Someone on the beach reported a potential shark sighting," Liam Kavanagh, first deputy commissioner of the department said in a statement. "Swimming was restricted for a short period near where the sighting occurred while lifeguards, NYPD and FDNY scanned the water without seeing any sign of a shark at which point normal operations resumed."

No shark sightings were reported this weekend on Long Island's state park beaches, said George Gorman, a spokesman for the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation.

Gorman said the department's protocol in such reported sightings includes immediately clearing the water and requesting help from the Coast Guard and helicopters provided by county police.

"A visual inspection is conducted, and after a sufficient amount of time, where we feel comfortable, we'd allow people back into the water," he said.

Along some parts of Nassau County's South Shore, beachgoers last week reported shark sightings, prompting lifeguards at Long Beach and other nearby areas to briefly close beaches.

But according to several lifeguards, searches, in at least one case, revealed the sharks were mating cownose rays.

Lifeguards speculated that the Discovery Channel's "Shark Week" series was responsible for the heightened awareness of the fearsome finned predators.

Lifeguard Vinny Leis, 32, a 14-year veteran at Long Beach, was sent on a water scooter to investigate the sightings last Thursday.

"There were maybe two dozen stingrays along a two-mile stretch of beach, and at least 200 yards offshore," he said. "They were swimming with one fin out of the water, so I get why people were confused."

With Zeke Miller