Results tagged “drownings”

After recent deaths off the Rockaways and Coney Island, the NY Times look at attacks against the lifeguard union head. One chief lifeguard at Rockaway Beach, Janet Fash, said "water safety decisions" are "made in union offices by Peter Stein and the people he makes supervisors through patronage.” Fash, who claims the city doesn't meet national standards of lifeguarding, has enlisted the support of city officials, including City Councilman Oliver Koppell who said "Stein is running a program that is corrupt in choosing candidates for becoming lifeguards," but the Parks Dept. denies her charges and Stein said, “She’s entitled to her views, but I just wish she had some evidence."

This past weekend, the Coast Guard, NYPD, FDNY and other groups looked for swimmers missing off local shores but ultimately did not find any of the three people who were apparently caught in riptides. Since Friday, four other people drowned off NYC and Long Island beaches.