Strong waves, nice weather expected for 25th Lewes Polar Bear Plunge

It seems like perfect weather for jumping into the chilly waters of the Atlantic, and this Sunday, the Special Olympics Delaware Polar Bear Plunge will turn a quarter century old.

When the event began in 1992, 78 plungers raised $7,000. Last year over 3,300 brave souls contributed nearly $800,000.

Overall the past 25 years has raised over $8.3-million dollars for special olympics delaware.

It used to held in Lewes but got too big for the bay so it was moved to Rehoboth, where we’re told nice weather will grace this Sunday.

Temperatures in the upper 40s and some sun should make for a beautiful day. However, because of a strom 100 miles outside of our immediate area, the ocean could present a set of problems for inexperienced polar plungers.

“That can really bring undertoes, maybe some rip currents in the water. So the wave height, that’s something we’re a little concerned about for Sunday,” said 47 ABC Meteorologist Daniel Johnson.

Even so, we’re told not to worry.

Gary Cimaglia with Special Olympics Delaware tells 47 ABC that the Delaware State Police, Coast Guard, and other county services will have things under control should anyone find themselves in danger.

“We’ve had these situations before where we’ve had heavy waves, high surf, even high tide at certain points,” Cimaglia told 47 ABC, “Delaware State Police divers come in and do a walkthrough ahead of time and they really set the line in the water,”

Cimaglia tells us over 100 safety officials ready to respond to any type of emergency. He says if the conditions get too out of hand the event would at worst be postponed, not cancelled.

If you haven’t registered yet for this year’s polar bear plunge, no worries. You can do so at the Atlantic Sands Hotel tonight until 8PM. On Saturday from 4PM-8PM and Sunday on Rehoboth Avenue from 10AM until the plunge.