Great White Shark Breaches Feet From Unsuspecting Boogie Boarder at Newport Beach

Footage recorded at Newport Beach in Southern California shows a great white shark launching itself from the ocean mere yards behind a boogie boarder, though the swimmer remained unaware of the dramatic encounter. The video was captured by Soaren Stevenson, a college ministry leader based in California, who did not realize what he had filmed until reviewing the footage several hours later.

Stevenson told Fox News Digital on Tuesday that his family had been praying on the beach and hoped for “a miracle.” Upon playback, he initially struggled to identify what appeared in the video before zooming in for a closer look. “I was like, ‘That’s not even a dolphin — that’s a shark,'” Stevenson said of the moment he recognized the animal.

The boogie boarder in the water—Stevenson’s brother-in-law—had no awareness of how close the predator came to him, according to Stevenson. Despite growing up in Hawaii and having previous encounters with sharks, the brother-in-law characterized the incident as “a once-in-a-lifetime-type experience,” Stevenson noted.

The breach coincided with the start of Shark Week 2026, which Stevenson described as “a funny little coincidence.” He emphasized that shark incidents with humans remain statistically uncommon, with fewer than 250 documented cases involving all shark species in California since 1950, according to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Stevenson said the experience gave him renewed respect for ocean ecosystems but stated he does not intend to avoid swimming. “I don’t think they want to eat us,” he said, while urging beachgoers to remain vigilant and practice water safety.

The close call occurred as another incident made headlines elsewhere: a man in his early 20s from Georgia was hospitalized after a shark estimated at 4 feet long bit his foot and ankle while wading in waist-deep water near Dunlawton Beach Approach in Daytona Beach Shores, Florida. Officials said he sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was treated at the scene.