By Chris Munzing
The beaches between Wyoming and Ohio avenues were briefly closed last Friday as the Long Beach Lifeguards' Medical Technicians Unit cleaned up the waste. According to City Manager Harold Porr III, the waste consisted of about a dozen needles, which were believed to have been used in the administration of insulin. Porr said that all the needles were collected and put in a "sharpbox," a sort of puncture-proof garbage can for the disposal of used needles.
Surf rakes have been used along the shore since then to make sure all of the waste was cleaned up. The Nassau County Department of Health was also called in to make sure the area was clean, which the department assured the city it was.
Witnesses said that waste was also found on Pennsylvania Beach over the weekend. A woman said that her 9-year-old son uncovered a needle when he kicked up sand near the family's beach chairs, just after lifeguards found a needle in the sand. She said several beachgoers also spotted what appeared to be some type of remains, which police later said was identified as an animal's shoulder. According to Lt. Michael Tangney, executive officer of the Long Beach Police Department, a bone, which was probably in the water for quite some time, was turned over to the county Medical Examiner's Office.
Tangney said that the tremendous amount of ocean dumping from New York City years ago is to blame for the beach's troubles. Rough currents can disturb this underwater garbage dump and deliver its contents to shore. According to Porr, it is, unfortunately, not too unusual an occurrence.
"It happens when the currents change in the ocean," Porr said, adding that as the winds and tides change, the ocean gets stirred up and various items wash ashore. The health department instructed the city to keep an eye on the tides to make sure the beach remains clean. "We've since been watching, and everything's been fine," Porr said. "We're still keeping an eye on everything."
Nassau County Department of Health spokeswoman Cynthia Brown said that the cleanup was handled properly. "Each beach has a protocol that includes a safety plan," she said, adding that Long Beach implemented its safety plan perfectly.
Brown explained that the health department was called in because of the nature of the waste, because needles can pose a serious health risk if improperly handled. The department then alerted every beach in Nassau County of the situation and instructed them to be alert for similar problems.
Brown said that the oceans are very clean, and that beachgoers should not worry about the safety of the water. "We test for bacteria at least once a week to make sure there's nothing in the water," she said.
