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Lifeguards Share Weekend Beach Stats
posted: July 28th, 2009 07:32 am |
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Waves at The Wedge have dropped to no more than six feet; Little Corona lifeguards have pulled out the green flags to let swimmers know it’s safer in the water. And local lifeguard officials have tallied the work from a weekend with huge waves and rip currents that included one death on Friday.
On Saturday, 100,000 people crowded local beaches, and lifeguards made 270 rescues, said Jennifer Schulz, a Newport Beach Fire Department spokeswoman. Nine of the rescues were from the surf and 261 were from the rip currents, she said. Of 8,146 preventive measures, 6,980 were from the water and 1,166 were considered “dry.”
On Sunday, 90,000 came to local beaches, with 257 rescues including seven from the surf and 251 from the rip currents. Lifeguards took 4,939 preventive measures: 4,527 wet and 412 dry. On Friday, they made 381 rescues.
The crowds on the beach to watch the immense waves caused huge traffic jams and parking problems in Newport Beach; one family reported that several driveways in West Newport were blocked by cars that had notes begging for the homeowners to call them on their cell phones to move the cars instead of having them towed. Newport Beach city officials also were called to inspect the Balboa Pier after the surf caused at least one piling to come loose; the pier was considered sound.
Yesterday’s high temperature was 82 degrees under a hazy sky — above normal but 4 degrees short of the record set in 2006. Today’s high should be about 75 degrees.
