Terrifying moment shark stalks Brit hols hotspot as lifeguards on jet skis order swimmers out of water and close beach

THIS is the moment lifeguards on jet-skis rush to save the swimmers after huge shark prowled near the coastline of a popular Spanish beach.

Shocking footage shows the moment terrified swimmers flee from the water as the blue shark neared Piles beach in Valencia.

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The drama occurred at around 6.30pm on Friday evening as the shark lurked dangerously close to the swimmers.

“I saw the fin in the water and it generated a lot of fear,” a beachgoer told Antena3.

Another scared swimmer said: “I was in the water with my daughter, we saw the lifeguard approaching with the jet ski and we didn’t know what was happening.

“He told us that we had to get out.”

Spanish cops decided to ban swimming at the beach following the sighting.

However, it was re-opened on Saturday morning after authorities designated it safe to swim once again.

However, beachgoers say they are still terrified of another shark encounter.

One told the local news outlet: “I now enter the water with fear and looking.”

It comes as a shark mauled a swimmer’s leg just further down Valencia’s coastline near Aigua Blanca beach, Oliva on Thursday.

The victim was swimming in the calm waters only reaching up to knee-depth while surrounded by dozens of other bathers when the predator attacked.

“I noticed a blow to my left leg and then a bite to my right foot,” he told Las Provincias.

“I didn’t have time to get scared. Noticing that blood was coming out of me, I went into the sea so as not to alarm everyone.”

He was rushed to emergency care and doctors confirmed from the bite marks that he had been bitten by a blue shark.

The Oliva City Council immediately ordered a bathing ban on the beach of Aigua Blanca and two others in the area as they hunted for the beast.

The beaches have now been re-opened after it was confirmed the shark was no longer in the area.

Scientists are stumped as to why there have been so many sharks spotted swimming in shallow waters along Spain’s coast this summer.

Dr Gavin Naylor, director of The Florida Program of Shark Research, told The Sun that scientists simply don’t know what appears to be drawing in the predatory fish.

But he did assure tourists that the area is not becoming a “dangerous hotspot” – and said the shark flurry in Spain could be a one-off event.

Blue sharks – which can grow up to 10ft long and weigh up to 200kg – appear to be behind most of the sightings in June and July.

They rarely bite humans but have been implicated in several biting incidents, four of which are reported to have ended fatally.

In June, several sharks were spotted off the Balearic Islands as well as the Costa Blanca.

Also in June, a group of fishermen in Majorca were left in shock when a massive cow shark approached their boat.

Meanwhile, a brave man has told of how he punched a shark in the face and frantically swam back to shore after it ripped his leg to pieces in a horror attack.

Richard Stubbs, 77, was enjoying a day snorkelling at Salty Sea Fossils at the Yallingup Lagoon in Western Australia when the beast struck.

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