This is Jaws-dropping!
The great white shark Mary Lee spent Tuesday prowling the waters off Long Island — yet authorities have no plan in place to quickly alert swimmers if she gets too close to the beach, The Post has learned.
The 3,500-pound beast is equipped with an electronic tracking device that is monitored by the non-profit OCEARCH, which had her a mere 10 miles from the shores of Robert Moses State Park as swimmers flocked there on an 89-degree day.
But there is no system for relaying the tracking information to area parks departments, sources said. Instead, the only line of defense keeping swimmers out of the maneater’s mouth are the lifeguards — who aren’t even on duty until Memorial Day.
“A shark would have to be seen by lifeguards or park personnel before swimmers would be alerted of it,” a state parks- department source said.
Long Island beaches would likely close if a shark was spotted less than a quarter-mile away, the source said.
A city Parks Department spokeswoman said the same goes for the five boroughs.
“If a lifeguard coordinator thinks there is a public-safety risk present, like a shark, he or she can close the beach until the area is cleared,” she said.
On Tuesday — the hottest day of the year — swimmers braving the chilly waters at Robert Moses were worried they would end up being Mary Lee’s next meal.
“I don’t want to be part of Jaws 3,” said beachgoer Katie Houghes, 18.
Others said they thought about going for a dip until they heard about Mary Lee’s Long Island excursion.
“It’s a little scary knowing there’s a shark in the water,” said Kyle Russo, 19, who hit the sand with a few friends. “You couldn’t pay me to go into the water.”
Shark experts and local fishermen warned that Mary Lee likely isn’t the only fish in the sea.
“If there’s one, there’s more,” said Steve Fernandez, a fisherman whose friend spotted a great white a few days ago off Jones Beach. OCEARCH tracks dozens of sharks around the world, including Mary Lee — regularly updating an interactive map with their latest locations.
They set up a Mary Lee account on Twitter that has 37,000 followers. But info on her whereabouts are not dispatched to any local authorities.
“Right now a protocol is not in place because this technology is new,” the state parks-department source said.
Long Islanders were disturbed by the lack of communication.
“They’re waiting for someone to get killed. That’s how they work up here,” said boat captain Paul Ivey, 72, from Rockville Centre.
“A shark like that can take your leg off in a second, especially if they think you’re a seal. When you’re wearing a wetsuit or surfing with a board, that’s what they think you are.”
Seaford resident Frank Fenimore thinks the shark problem will only get worse.
“We’re beginning to see more and more seals every year over here. It’s no wonder that we’ll probably see more great whites too,” he said.
The lifelong fisherman has had his own recent close encounter while fishing with a friend.
“We were catching blues, they were biting and all of a sudden he stopped,” he said.
“We looked over and we saw a dorsal fin coming right in. I can definitely see this happening more often.”