Nick and Gina Donato, of Lansdale, Pa., and his sister, Michelle Bruns and her children make the most of it despite rough surf and cooler temps.
By MADDY VITALE
The Ocean City Beach Patrol is working with a limited number of lifeguards due to many of them going back to school or returning to their full-time jobs this time of year. To add to the difficulty, Hurricanes Idalia and Franklin have been creating rip currents and dangerous surf.
But Ocean City Beach Patrol Director Allan Karas and the lifeguards have been working hard to keep beachgoers safe.
“We monitor the conditions day by day, hour by hour, and determine how far we let people in the water and whether we let people in or not,” Karas said in an interview Thursday at the beach patrol's First Street headquarters.
Floridians experienced a Category 3 hurricane from Idalia. After that, the storm went through Georgia and to the Carolinas, downing powerlines, unleashing strong winds and producing heavy of rain before heading out to sea Thursday.
Nick and Gina Donato, of Lansdale, Pa., and his sister, Michelle Bruns and her children, make the most of their day at the beach despite rough surf and cooler temps.
Although the hurricanes weren't a direct threat to the New Jersey coast, they have churned up treacherous surf and rip currents at the shore in their wake.
Hurricane Franklin was moving over the open waters of the Atlantic Ocean, creating a steady stream of rip currents through Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.
For the Ocean City Beach Patrol, it meant giving bathers a small slice of area to swim in between designated green flags, Karas explained.
“The past two days, we’ve allowed people in, but kept people close. Yesterday was horrible, with rain early on,” Karas said. “For several hours, we had nothing going on. We kept the flags narrow and kept them in and the water wasn’t as bad.”
The water temperature was 73 on Thursday for those who decided to venture into the strong surf, while the air temp was a brisk 67 degrees, Karas said.
Few beachgoers hit the sands on the chilly, windy day.
A mother watched closely as her children waded in the surf at First Street beach, as lifeguards watched nearby.
Gina and Nick Donato, of Lansdale, Pa., and their infant and 3-year-old daughter, along with Nick’s sister, Michelle Bruns, of Chalfont, Pa., and her daughters, Liana, 9, and 7-year-old Myla, didn’t mind the whipping winds or rough surf.
The family enjoyed playing games and sitting by an Ocean City lifeguard boat on First Street beach.
In fact, they kind of liked the excitement of it all.
“There is no bad day at the beach,” Nick Donato said with a smile.
The family was on vacation for a few days. And while the sun wasn’t out and the surf was rough, the kids still had fun, mostly playing games on the beach.
“This is our last summer fling until the kids go back to school,” Bruns noted.
Myla Bruns said before going back to play in the sand, "I really like the ocean and watching the waves."
Lt. Matt DiMarino and lifeguards Claudia Booth, left, and Carly Rossiter keep close watch of bathers.
Heading into Labor Day Weekend, the unofficial end to the summer season, rough surf is expected to continue to be a possibility.
Ocean City Beach Patrol Lt. Matt DiMarino and lifeguards Claudia Booth and Carly Rossiter kept close watch of the few swimmers who splashed in the water Thursday.
DiMarino noted that the westerly winds the day before made for a nice afternoon, after the morning rains cleared.
“It was one of the best beach days because of the westerly wind,” he said.
Rossiter said that on Thursday, the guards had one main job.
“We are just making sure to keep everyone in the shallow water,” she said.
Red flags warn beachgoers to stay off the jetties.
The Ocean City Beach Patrol guards beaches from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekends and holidays and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays.
The following beaches will be guarded through Labor Day Weekend:
The lifeguards have emergency vehicles at the ready for saves.
Churned up surf is expected to last through the holiday weekend.
