Paul Martinka
A “skeleton crew” of lifeguards will be on the clock longer during heat waves, Mayor Eric Adams announced Tuesday – but there are no plans to extend swimming hours at city beaches.
Roughly 66 lifeguards will be on call for emergencies until 8 p.m. during heat waves though swimmers will still be barred from entering the water after 6 p.m., Adams said.
The news comes as six drownings have been reported this season – already one more than was recorded all of last year. It’s the highest number of drownings within city limits since 2019, which also saw at least six deaths, The Post previously reported.
During heat waves, lifeguards won’t be on the chairs after 6 p.m. “because they don’t want to give the false impression that the beaches are open and that it’s safe to swim,” Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer said.
Instead, the lifeguards will be inside shacks and will rely on FDNY, Parks Enforcement Patrol officers and other city employees to call for help.
The extended lifeguard hours plan was rolled out as part of lifeguard union negotiations with the city, Torres-Springer added.
Beach lifeguards are typically on duty daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., but pool lifeguards have worked until 8 p.m. at some locations during heat advisories this season. Former Mayor Bill de Blasio also extended beach hours for lifeguards and swimmers alike during a 2019 heat wave.
News of the extension comes as the city faces a years-long lifeguard shortage that worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. About 870 lifeguards are now employed by the city — though more than 1,500 are needed to fully patrol beaches and pools, The Post previously reported.
“Ultimately, these are about workflows, and being a lifeguard is a difficult job,” Torres-Springer said, noting the strenuous hours lifeguards spend in the hot sun. “Whenever we adjust schedules, we’ve got to consider hours, staffing and the schedules. So what we put together is a skeleton crew.”
A City Hall spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the lifeguard shortage and the city’s ability to adequately staff beaches during heat waves.
The temporary extension echoes an ongoing call from city officials to extend lifeguard hours at New York City beaches and pools as the number of drownings increase.
“There’s a lot more work that the city needs to do,” Queens Borough President Donovan Richards told The Post earlier this month.
Aside from extending lifeguard hours until at least 7 p.m., Richards has championed extending the beach season beyond Sept. 8 and building more pools in city parks.
“The mayor’s announcement today is a solid first step toward addressing the beach safety crisis our city faces, but the administration needs to do even more to make sure we’re making real, tangible investments in water safety and swim instruction,” Richards told The Post Tuesday.
“We must finally end our lifeguard shortage and ensure that every beach and pool is properly protected,” he said. “I look forward to working with my colleagues in government to achieve all of these objectives and more.”
City Council Member Shekar Krishnan, chair of the council’s Committee on Parks and Recreation, introduced legislation in February that would extend the beach and outdoor pool season from the second Saturday in May to the second Sunday of October.
Operating hours for beaches and pools would also be extended from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
To Krishnan, Tuesday’s announcement is just step one on the road to safer swimming.
“With six drownings already, just halfway through this summer, we are seeing the tragic consequences of the Mayor’s lack of meaningful action,” Krishnan said.
“His announcement today is a small step in the right direction, but still falls far short of the free swim lessons, the flexible hiring of lifeguards, and the extension of operating hours for city pools and beaches that we need to confront this emergency.”