“The season’s upon us,” John Rooney, head of the East Hampton Town Recreation Department, told the town board on Tuesday. Some ocean beaches, including Indian Wells and Atlantic Avenue in Amagansett and South Edison and Ditch Plain in Montauk, will be staffed by lifeguards beginning on Saturday, May 24, during the Memorial Day weekend, as will Big Albert’s on the bay in Amagansett. They will remain open on weekends until mid-June, when all beaches will be staffed full time.
While the word “beach” may be synonymous with relaxation, it can be anything but for the people tasked with making it a safe and organized destination for both residents and summer visitors.
At Tuesday’s meeting, which was held, perhaps fittingly, in Montauk, the Beach Advisory Group, helmed by Councilman David Lys, spoke about its plan for the upcoming season. The group, born out of Covid, includes department heads, lifeguards, police, and the nuts-and-bolts buildings and grounds people, who all play a role in keeping the beaches attractive. John Ryan Jr., the town’s chief lifeguard, with Tim Treadwell, head of the Marine Patrol, and Mr. Rooney were all on hand to discuss beach permits, custodial protocols, comfort station hours, proper staffing levels, and other challenges and responsibilities.
Ditch Plain is in good shape. “The sand has actually been accreting there over the course of the wintertime,” said Councilman Lys. “There’s a lot of sand on that beach. More sand than I’ve seen in years.”
Mr. Ryan said lifeguards will again use drones for “life-saving needs and dangerous Marine Patrol observations,” and A.T.V.s will guard beaches. “We have 71 miles of waterfront here,” he told the board. A.D.A. beach mats will soon be installed, and the junior lifeguard programs are set to run.
“The concern across the United States is being able to get lifeguards,” Mr. Ryan said. “Well, we don’t have that problem. We’re doing it right.” Because of the success of the town’s lifeguard programs, lifeguard stands will be fully staffed this summer. That said, Mr. Ryan noted that swimmers have an obligation to be responsible. They should check the town’s website to know the day’s ocean conditions before taking off for the beach, he said.
“We all know if you take all your stuff down to the beach, you’ll be less likely to pack it all back up [when] you realize surf conditions are bad.” As always, every speaker encouraged people to swim only in lifeguard-protected waters.
Each public access point to a beach is marked with a sign, coded with a number followed by a letter. Mr. Ryan urged beachgoers to know which beach they are at. In the event of an emergency, the beach number can be relayed to a 911 dispatcher and emergency units can be efficiently dispatched.
Mr. Lys a observed that the signs can now be read in both directions, from the beach and from the road. They will also be used to help alert swimmers to conditions: In case of a hazard, the locations will be posted on the town’s website.
Beach comfort stations, the board was told, will once again be closed at night to preclude vandalism. “Last year we installed a lot of security cameras at our comfort stations, and there really wasn’t any vandalism,” said Mr. Rooney.
Dogs continue to be an issue. Councilman Lys described a Mother’s Day hike at the Napeague Walking Dunes, “one of the most beautiful locations here,” marred by bags full of dog excrement.
“It’s just disrespectful, lazy, and just to let you know, illegal,” he said. “It’s really challenging for folks to navigate all of the poop bags on our beaches.”
On many beaches dogs are not allowed. While there is no leash law in the town, dogs are supposed to be under their owners’ control, though too often they are not. Some run amok and poop while the owners aren’t paying attention and the waste stays behind, or the owners place it in the now ubiquitous green bags and leave those behind, sometimes because of forgetfulness.
Councilwoman Cate Rogers said it was a problem wherever dogs congregate and a growing issue. “The easy solution is to keep an old cooler in the back of your car or an old box and stick [the waste] in there until you get home,” she said.
In a related issue, household trash, dumped in town receptacles, and beach-fire debris, also degrades the beaches. “Please leave nothing on the beach but your footprints,” Mr. Treadwell said.
