Cape Cod Cashes In On 'Shark Tourism': Patch PM

ANDOVER, MA — It's Tuesday, September 7. Here's what you should know this afternoon:

• The International Institute of New England is preparing to resettle 150 recent evacuees and hundreds more humanitarian arrivals from Afghanistan in the Lowell area over the next year.
• Police are searching for a coyote they believe was involved in separate attacks on 2-year-old girls in Arlington Sunday.
• A Revere man is facing an animal cruelty charge after leaving his dog chained to a steel rod at the edge of a beach, leaving him to the "mercy" of the next high tide, state police said.
• Woburn police recently seized over 7 ounces of cocaine and methamphetamine, a gun and ammunition at a local home following a narcotics investigation.

Scroll down for more on those and other stories Patch has been covering in Massachusetts today.

Today's Top Story

Three summers after Cape Cod saw two great white shark attacks on humans — including the state's first fatal attack since 1936 — the popular tourist destination south of Boston is showing signs it's slowly, tentatively embracing its shark-y reputation.

A small but growing group of charter boat operators are offering great white shark tours in a region where whale and seal watching excursions have long been a tourist rite of passage.

Elsewhere, local shark-themed merchandisers are reporting brisk businesses, even as the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted parts of the region's tourism industry. Cape Cod hosts about 4 million visitors a year, who bring in more than $1 billion in tourism spending and support thousands of jobs.

Read the full story.

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Tuesday's Other Top Stories

150+ Afghan refugees coming to Lowell area: The International Institute of New England is planning to settle 150 recent Afghan evacuees and hundreds more refugees in the Lowell and Boston areas over the next year, the organization said. The organization expects to settle most of the evacuees in greater Lowell. They are seeking donations to support the new arrivals, who may make it to the state within weeks.

Coyote attacks toddlers in Arlington: Police are searching for a coyote they believe was involved in separate attacks on 2-year-old girls in Arlington Sunday. Both children were hospitalized with injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening. Officials are tracking coyote activity in the area and continue to search for the animal they believe was involved in both incidents.

Man accused of animal cruelty: A Revere man is facing an animal cruelty charge after leaving his dog chained to a steel rod at the edge of a beach, leaving him to the "mercy" of the next high tide, state police said. Police and the owner of a Revere kennel rescued the dog, which was found Aug. 29 on the bottom of the ramp from Winthrop Parkway to Short Beach. Had the dog not been found, he could have been trapped underwater when the tide came in, police said. Elias Pacheco-Osario, 27, was arrested Friday following a days-long investigation by state police.

Woburn drug bust: Woburn police recently seized over 7 ounces of cocaine and methamphetamine, a gun and ammunition at a local home following a narcotics investigation, the department said Friday. The search Thursday followed "weeks of undercover investigative police work," the department said. The Vice/Narcotics Unit got a search warrant for a Woburn home and seized a gun, ammunition, 150 grams of methamphetamine and 50 grams of cocaine — about 7 ounces of drugs, combined.

Girl, 13, dies in dirt bike crash: A 13-year-old girl died and a man suffered injuries after a dirt bike crash in Wareham Monday afternoon. Ava Pioppi, 13, of Carver, was at Wareham MX Park on Cranberry Highway riding on a dirt bike track around 4 p.m. when police say she appeared to have lost control after landing a jump. The Plymouth County District Attorney's Office said she then swerved into the other lane, colliding with a male rider.

Eat fresh: Patch's 2021 Massachusetts Farmers Market Guide

Picture This: Angler's Rare Catch

On August 27, an angler caught a northern snakehead from Reservoir Pond in Canton. After obtaining and analyzing the specimen, MassWildlife confirmed this fish was a snakehead, an invasive species in Massachusetts that is native to parts of Asia and Africa.