New York City-area beaches reopen but still see high rip current risk in Erin's wake
Beaches in the New York City area and New Jersey were open Saturday, but swimming advisories and bans remained in place as there continues to be a high rip current risk in Hurricane Erin's wake.
The city's Office of Emergency Management issued a warning for life-threatening rip currents through 8 p.m. Sunday, reminding swimmers to stay near lifeguards and avoid swimming near red flags.
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced swimming could resume Saturday at Long Island's Jones Beach State Park and beachgoers at Robert Moses State Park could reenter the water up to their knees, but swimming was still not allowed at Hither Hills State Park near Montauk because of surf conditions.
The city said swimming and wading were not recommended Saturday at Staten Island's Cedar Grove Beach, Wolfe's Pond Beach and South Beach.
Lifeguards rescue multiple people from water at Rockaway Beach
Lifeguards at Rockaway Beach in Queens got a round of applause Saturday after rescuing multiple people from the water.
Gary Velasquez and his girlfriend, Kennedy Magee, got caught in rip currents along with at least one other person.
"I couldn't touch the ground," said Magee, who is four months pregnant. "We were by the rocks, like, waist [deep], and then the waves started getting really big and we ended up all the way over there, all the way in the back. Like, it was insane."
"I was trying my best to swim out of there, and then I was running out of breath little by little," Velasquez said. "'Let me just keep swimming, no way I'm about to die here.' That's all that was going through my mind, and then they just came right on time. Right on time for my safety."
A beach patrol drone was deployed, and at least a dozen lifeguards worked together to use a rope hooked to a buoy to pull the swimmers and lifeguards back to shore.
Surfer and former lifeguard Andrey Moiseyenko happened to be in the water nearby.
"He's like 'help, I can't breathe,'" Moiseyenko said.
Moiseyenko said he advised the swimmer to stay calm.
"I was telling him to hold onto the board and I'm gonna pull him with my leash, but it was too strong. I couldn't pull both of us," he said. "The waves look smaller now, but the rip is still there, so you can't let it fool you."
The city reminds swimmers that lifeguards are on duty at its beaches seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Sept. 7, and that no one is allowed in the water when lifeguards aren't on duty.
Man drowns at Fire Island beach
Suffolk County Police said a man drowned at Sailors Haven beach on Fire Island.
South Carolina resident Ishmoile Mohammed, 59, was swimming in the ocean on Saturday afternoon when he got caught in a rip current, police said.
Lifeguards and Fire Island National Seashore employees managed to pull Mohammed out of the water around 2:45 p.m., according to police.
Mohammed was airlifted to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
First Alert Forecast
Erin is now a post-tropical cyclone as it moves even further out into the Atlantic Ocean, but its effects will linger throughout the weekend along the region's coastline from Long Island to the Jersey Shore.
The risk for dangerous rip currents is the greatest concern at the local beaches, where they could develop at any time. Wave heights will gradually decrease over the weekend, dropping from 4-8 feet on Saturday to 3-7 feet by Sunday.
Although Sunday won't feature the crystal clear skies displayed on Friday and Saturday, it still looks to be a decent day. Besides more clouds in place, humidity levels will increase, making it feel a little uncomfortable at times.
There also is a chance of showers, and maybe even a thunderstorm later in the day, mainly north and west of the city.
Most areas will stay dry though, as highs top out in the low to mid 80s.