Ocean City Beach Patrol, Fire Department warn of surf, heatwave conditions
OCEAN CITY, Md – With Heatwave conditions hitting Delmarva, Ocean City Fire Department, and Beach Patrol are raising awareness on the dangers of heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and the dangerous conditions facing those looking to head into the waters to cool off.
“The shore break has been so significant, the rip currents have been so significant and the size of our waves have been more significant,” said Ocean City Fire Department Chief Richard Bowers.
Bowers tells 47ABC that with temperatures in the high 90s and high humidity, the conditions can be tough for folks outdoors.
“For an individual, just the heat stress itself can lead you to dehydration. Heat exhaustion or God forbid, heat stroke, heat stroke is the most severe, that’s where you’re not sweating and cooling your body off,” he said.
As for the beachfront, According to Ocean City Beach Patrol, ten miles of coastline will now be guarded by 16 guard stands, down from 33 just days ago with ATVs patrolling between.
They say conditions are improving compared to the weekend, but that rip current risk is still there.
“The rips are not as prevalent and the surface definitely laid down from the week on. So it’s a lot calmer ocean, but there’s always the risk with the changing the ingoing tide and the outgoing tide that rip currents could form,” said OCBP Lieutenant Ward Kovacs.
Bowers tells 47ABC that they are hoping people stay hydrated and out of the water, as they see their call volumes spike between 1 pm and 4 pm, just as temperatures peak. He tells us the drop off in visitors from Labor Day doesn’t mean his department sees fewer calls, especially with unseasonably high temperatures in the forecast.
“The bottom line is the same types of incidents can occur, whether it’s in the water, on the beach, on the beach itself, on the boardwalk, or in town somewhere,” he said adding that “if you’re going to go in the water to swim, which we hope you don’t, but if you do swim near or get in the water near a lifeguard, that is just the best information and best, best prevention message that we can get out there.”
Bowers tells 47ABC the best way to prevent heat-related injury is to consume 8-16 ounces of water or Gatorade every 3 hours and to be mindful of alcohol consumption.
Kovacs says they are calling on any lifeguards who are able to work part-time to reach out to OCBP to pick up shift to help boost coverage and potentially open more stands.
