Mayor Eric Adams has announced that all city beaches will be closed on Wednesday and Thursday due to hazardous conditions associated with Hurricane Erin.
The huge storm, which is moving closer to the eastern seaboard, is currently off the coast of North Carolina, creating waves of 20 feet or more along the sand dunes of North Carolina’s barrier islands.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has said that the hurricane is currently tracking northward, running parallel to the east coast, while the storm has created dangerous rip currents along much of the eastern seaboard.
Erin, currently a Category 2 hurricane, is not expected to make landfall at this point will create dangerous c0nditions as it tracks northward, the NHC has said.
Adams and Parks Commissioner Iris Rodriguez-Rosa have announced that all city beaches, including those in Queens such as Rockaway Beach and Fort Tilden, will be closed for swimming on Wednesday and Thursday as a result of the dangerous conditions created by the storm.
Adams pointed to a National Weather Service report that predicts waves of up to 13 feet impacting beaches across the city, stating that all access to the water will be prohibited over the next 48 hours.
The sand will remain open to visitors across both days, Adams said, but there will be no lifeguards on duty and swimming will be prohibited.
“We are working with all of our city agencies to prepare for Hurricane Erin and keep New Yorkers safe,” Adams said in a statement. “This storm is expected to create dangerous rip currents and large waves, and so we are closing all city beaches to swimming on Wednesday and Thursday. We are asking New Yorkers to take precautions and please sign up for NotifyNYC for additional updates.”
Rodriguez-Rosa, meanwhile, said keeping New Yorkers safe is the city’s “top priority.”
“In consultation with our sister agencies and based on conditions projected by the National Weather Service, NYC Parks is prohibiting access to the water at all beaches on August 20 and 21,” Rodriguez-Rosa said in a statement. “We strongly urge all New Yorkers to heed these warnings and not risk their lives by entering the water.”
Adams stated that lifeguards and Parks Enforcement Patrol will patrol the coastline over the coming two days to enforce the ban on swimming. Adams advised New Yorkers to adhere to the instructions for their own safety.
