Seaside Heights, New Jersey will ticket beachgoers who swim when lifeguards are off-duty
SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. -- Police in Seaside Heights, New Jersey are laying down the law to prevent drownings.
Officers are being told to write tickets to people who go into the ocean when lifeguards are off-duty.
Even though summer is nearing an end, there's still beach weather on the Jersey Shore.
"Today is a perfect beach day. Nice waves, less people," said Kathy Monkemeyer, of Ridgefield Park.
But with Hurricane Lee churning up high surf conditions and dangerous rip currents, it's enough to keep Monkemeyer and her husband out of the water.
"Common sense says if you have this many rip tides, you just don't go out there," said Karl Monkemeyer.
"Yeah there's too many rip tides down here. It's been on the news all week," said Kathy Monkemeyer.
In Seaside Heights, lifeguards are on-duty on weekends through the end of September.
"We're asking people, use your common sense," said Mayor Tony Vaz.
According to Vaz, rescue squads have had a busy month. At least a dozen people have had to be saved from the water in recent weeks, he said.
So, it's time to crack down.
Beachgoers will get a warning if caught swimming when lifeguards aren't around or if red flags are out. If they refuse to get out of the water, they will be ticketed.
"We are going to issue summonses, borough summonses, to anyone that violates our rule or is disrespectful to the authority, be it lifeguards or police," said Vaz.
The tickets are part of an existing ordinance that has been seldom used. But officials believe enforcing it now can save lives.
"I'd rather be strong and give out summonses than to have that on my conscience later on," said Vaz.
"I don't particularly care for it, myself. But I understand why they're doing it. They've had to pull a lot of people out of the water lately, and I don't want it to be me," said Carl Neely, a visitor from Baltimore.
Officials said swimmers could face fines up to $1,250.
The dangerous rip currents are expected to last through Saturday.
