How is tech keeping beachgoers safe?

Going to the beach is a summer tradition in Long Beach. Swimming and surfing in the ocean are the norm.

But with the fun comes some risk. Rip currents have been an issue, and County Executive Bruce Blakeman announced safety measures for these earlier this month in Lido Beach. Recently, another threat has been increasingly prevalent: sharks.

Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the state’s response to this summer’s recent surge in these sightings.

On Shark Awareness Day, on July 14, it was revealed that 60 drones will be deployed across Long Island, New York City and Westchester to assist in shark sightings. This measure aims to enhance surveillance and ensure the safety of the state’s coastal communities.

Long Beach’s lifeguards received one of the drones to assist in their shark sighting routines. The police department currently has the drone at its headquarters.

“As beachgoers are enjoying their summer in New York, spending time on some of the most beautiful beaches in the country, we have added this eye in the sky,” Hochul said. “State personnel will continue to do all we can to keep beachgoers safe. We have the tools and strategies to monitor marine wildlife and protect the health and safety of New Yorkers. These new drones will allow us to scan the water and help local governments across Long Island and New York City keep local beaches safe for all.”

Richard Borawski, Long Beach’s lifeguard chief, said that a well-structured protocol is triggered to ensure safety when a beachgoer reports seeing a fin in the water. The lifeguards on duty would then scan the water visually for any unusual activity. Subsequently, specialized lifeguards equipped with high-powered binoculars are dispatched to the reported location to validate the sighting.

If a fin is confirmed to be nearby, an immediate call goes over the radio to launch jet skis from the nearby sand. These jet skis are dispatched to form a grid in the area where the fin was spotted for a closer investigation. This serves as the second layer of confirmation, acting as a physical verification from just a few feet away.

Should this physical confirmation align with the initial binocular sighting, the beach is promptly red-flagged, which means the entire stretch of the beach is shut down. This entire process aims to prioritize the well-being of the beachgoers while ensuring a timely and efficient response to potential threats.

While the new drone won't be a replacement for the current safety protocol, it will act as an addition to the existing procedures.

“It’s an added protocol,” Borawski said. “So, now it's just a quicker way for us to identify and we'll still continue the protocols that we do.”

Borawski said the drones — which are each equipped with two to three batteries — can maintain a flight path for about 30 to 40 minutes on a single charge. This ensures they can be launched anytime, as needed. Additionally, these drones include advanced features such as thermal imagery, among others.

Currently, lifeguards are undergoing training to operate the drones and learning how to use them. Borawski's goal is to get at least three or four lifeguards trained within the next week or two, so they can start using the drones as part of their regular safety routine immediately.

“I think us having it, it's going to put everybody's comfort level a lot easier knowing that we have that capability on top of the jet skis and the high-powered binoculars,” he said. “It's just another precaution. You can never be too safe. I love the fact that the city is taking advantage of them, they backed us 100-percent and tried to get whatever we needed.”

Borawski asserted that the future of shark safety in New York lies in educating people and raising awareness about the diverse marine life that inhabits our waters.

“I think that's really the next step, for the agencies, putting the word out that it's their home and we just have to respect what goes on out there,” he said. “If you see a pod, you don't swim near the pod. If you see anything that's jumping out of the water, most likely, it's jumping out of the water for a reason. So, stay clear of it. It is about being aware. I think that's really the message here. Maybe public awareness announcements would be good. The drone is just another added resource for us to use, and we're excited to have it.”