Rockaway assemblymember calls for better beach safety

Assemblymember Stacey Pheffer Amato is calling for a hearing on lifeguard protocols for early fall. Photo via NYC Parks

By Rachel Vick

Summer might be winding down but Assemblymemebr Stacey Pheffer Amato is calling on the Parks Department to have a water safety plan in place for the New Yorkers who continue to flock to the beach on the warmest days of early fall.

In a letter issued to fellow Queens representative Councilmember Peter Koo — who chairs the Parks committee  — Pheffer Amato asks that the council hold a hearing on lifeguard staffing.

“After several close calls and tragedies this summer - tragedies that were entirely preventable - it is past time for the Parks Department to be held accountable,” Pheffer Amato said. “As we move into September, and even October after the beach season officially ends, families will continue to come to the beach, and we want everyone to stay safe. We must hear the Parks Department’s plan for the rest of the summer, so we can be proactive and avoid these very preventable tragedies.”

Pheffer Amato referenced several drownings that have occurred off the shores of Rockaway Beach in her district, and the disparate lifeguard coverage in predominantly Black and Brown communities.

In 2019, seven people between the  ages of 15 and 28 died — all were people of color. Two were Ozone Park high schoolers who drowned after being swept up in a Rockaway Beach rip current on a warm day in October.

The most recent drowning occurred in August of this year, when a college student from Maspeth died.

“We… would welcome this forum with representatives from NYC Parks -- and especially representatives for the Lifeguards -- given their critical role in implementing practices that bolster safety and sustainability around the beach, with the many important functions it serves,” said Bridget Klapinski, president of the Rockaway Beach Civic Association