Warning signs are up at a popular Maine beach after a great white shark sighting just a mile offshore.
Officials in Kennebunkport say the big fish was spotted by the town harbormaster on Thursday morning near Goose Rocks Beach.
"He was out in the town boat and actually saw the fin of the shark and pulled up next to it," said Kennebunkport Deputy Police Chief Kurt Moses.
The town estimates the fish was about 12 feet long.
Police officers immediately put up signs at the beach and walked up and down it to tell visitors about the sighting.
"I sat up when the cop went by," said Jill Glassman, who practices long distance swimming along the beach daily and has been coming to Goose Rocks for 40 years. "I was shocked because great whites are never up this way."
At 68 degree, the waters off Goose Rocks were warm enough for a great white at the time it was seen.
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Jeff Hall, another beach goer, believes he may have seen the shark's fin in the distance Thursday morning.
"I didn't know what it was. I just saw something come out of the water. I thought it looked like a porpoise," he said. "It's just a little eerie and makes you think about how far you go out swimming."
Despite the warnings, the beach remains open and there are no plans to close it unless the shark does something warranting that.
"This was a fluke event. We're certainly not going to shut down the beaches for one sighting," Moses said, adding that other towns nearby had been notified.
Many swimmers were in the water on Friday though some said they'd keep an extra eye on the water in case the shark reappears.
"I'll definitely use a little more caution. Maybe run in the water, do a quick dip and get out," said Chris Hall.
Anyone who sees the shark again is asked to call the Kennebunkport Police Department.
