Newcastle beaches could reopen after being closed for nine straight days due to shark sightings. <\/p>\n
The great white shark may have disappeared but wild weather and big surf have rolled in to keep most of Newcastle's beaches closed. <\/p>\n
The city's beaches officially reopened on Monday after a record nine days of closures due to repeated shark sightings. <\/p>\n
A five-metre great white shark, nicknamed Bruce by locals, and another three-and-a-half metre shark had been spotted in the breaks offshore. <\/p>\n
The large great white was first spotted off Merewether Beach on January 10, before it was seen swimming up and down the nearby coastline throughout the week. <\/p>\n
\"It's a great relief for everybody but we're still going to maintain a higher rate of surveillance than we normally would,\" said Nobbys Beach inspector Paul Bernard. <\/p>\n
City Council spokeswoman Dana Fischetti said Novocastrians hadn't been too perturbed by the shark threat. <\/p>\n
\"Really most people have just taken it in their stride,\" Ms Fischetti told AAP. <\/p>\n
\"We haven't had anyone call up about doing something about the shark. <\/p>\n
\"People are pretty accepting that it's their habitat, so when one comes along we just wait for it to go away.\" <\/p>\n
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Newcastle beaches remain closed<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Newcastle beaches could reopen after being closed for nine straight days due to shark sightings. Continue reading