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A shark bit a surfer Friday morning while he was in the water at North Salmon Creek Beach in Sonoma County.

The incident marks a rare shark encounter in California, where only about six documented incidents occur annually despite nearly 50,000 beach rescues per year.

Frigid ocean water in Sonoma County wasn’t the only thing sending a chill down the spine of a surfer riding the waves on Friday.

The surfer was paddling in the water off North Salmon Creek, roughly 300 yards from shore, about 8 a.m. when a shark bit his hand. The surfer’s injuries were not considered life threatening, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Marine Unit already had

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