For the second weekend in a row, Parks officials did end up going ahead and closing down city beaches along the coasts of Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island due to the residual effects of what was Tropical Storm Danny (yes, they are closed to swimming today, though sunbathing and some surfing is okay). Long Island beachgoers didn't have much better luck with Nassau County shutting down 20 of its beaches and Suffolk following suit with a couple more. Well there's always Orchard! WCBS 2 also says that Suffolk officials discouraged swimming at 64 other spots along the Sound due to "sewage discharges and elevated bacteria levels" that occur sue to storm runoff water. While the storm itself did not create much of a stir, it managed to rough the tides up once again, just a week after Hurricane Bill drew out hordes of surfers looking to catch 10-foot waves. One Mastic Beach resident said, "You feel like you're gonna break your neck or something. The waves are strong, you can feel the current tearing at your feet." more ›

Danny has been downgraded from "Tropical Storm" to "Tropical Depression," but it'll still cause dangerous surf this weekend. 1010 WINS reports that "Danny had been mostly absorbed by a low pressure system associated with a cold front over North Carolina," with hurricane specialist Lixion Avila explaining, "We were expecting that that was going to happen sooner or later. It happened a little bit sooner. Basically Danny has been swallowed by the big low." The NYC Parks Department hasn't closed beaches, but warned that "beachgoers [should] exercise caution at all city beaches due to Tropical Storm Danny. Large swells are expected to produce dangerous surf conditions and life-threatening rip currents during the next day or two. The coastal impact may result in temporary restrictions, including requirements that swimmers remain in shallow waters and closures at city beaches during this weekend." (More details here.) And beach-side businesses will be taking another hit this weekend—the manager of the Jones Beach food court said, "It's been exactly like this. It's been like a ghost town." more ›