State beaches reopen for swimming, in time for Labor Day weekend
NEW YORK - A huge sigh of relief for beachgoers this Friday.
The Governor's office announced that all Long Island and New York State beaches would reopen Friday afternoon.
One beachgoer named Jeff said, "It’s the best way to end the summer right now. This is perfect."
PREVIOUSLY: Three Long Island beaches closed to swimmers over rip current concerns
Long Beach, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
On Thursday, Jones Beach, Robert Moses and Hither Hills were all closed to swimming, due to dangerous rip currents.
The currents were caused by Hurricane Franklin that churned throught the Atlantic Ocean during a supermooon.
The goal was to have the ban lifted by Saturday as surf conditions improve, but now visitors can hit the waters even sooner.
READ MORE: Tropics watch: Idalia, Franklin, Jose, Gert, soon-to-be Kalia, Depression 12 jam the Atlantic
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - AUGUST 31: Children play in the surf as surfers ride waves at Rockaway Beach in New York as high surf from Hurricane Franklin delivers strong rip tides and large waves to most of the eastern seaboard on August 31, 2023 in New Yor
The high tides created large pools of water on Jones Beach.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - AUGUST 31: People enjoy a day at Rockaway Beach in New York as high surf from Hurricane Franklin delivers strong rip tides and large waves to most of the Eastern seaboard on August 31, 2023 in New York City. Numerous beaches acro
"We had high tides again last night and this morning that were higher than usual…so what we did yesterday is we created trenches."
Director Gorman explained how the State used trenches in order to alleviate major flooding.
"So the trench gets opened up and literally hundreds of thousands of gallons of this standing water goes back into the Atlantic Ocean. But we closed them so that when the high tide came in, just the opposite happened. So we are reopening the ends of the trenches to get the water back out into the Atlantic Ocean," he explained.
Even more good news, all the beaches in New York will be fully staffed with lifeguards throughout the holiday weekend.