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Reports: Food Being Thrown Into Waters To Lure In Sharks

LONG BEACH (CBSLA.com) — The combination of hot weather, big crowds at the beach seeking relief from the heat, and the rash of recent shark sightings has lifeguards on alert this weekend.

With temperatures inland expected to hit triple digits this weekend, and not let up until next weekend, authorities are preparing for large influx of people at Southern California's beaches – which have been closed on and off, up and down the coast because of shark sightings, swarms and attacks throughout the spring.

"We'll keep an eye out, but we'll probably stay kind of close to the shore," a beachgoer from Sacramento said.

Making things worse are reports of people throwing shark food into the water to lure them closer to shore.

"We've gotten reports of possibly people chumming," Long Beach Marine Safety Capt. Cameron Abel said. "From our standpoint, it's a public safety concern. What we don't want is sharks to become accustomed and conditioned to looking to humans for food."

Chumming is not illegal, but lifeguards are cracking down on dumping of waste of any kind.

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