Swimmer drowns off Fire Island after many LI seashores reopen

A South Carolina man drowned Saturday afternoon after he was caught in a robust rip present off Sailors Haven on Fire Island, Suffolk County police mentioned.

Ishmoile Mohammed, 59, was swimming within the ocean within the early afternoon when he was swept east by the present.

Lifeguards, with the assistance of Fire Island National Seashore staff, pulled him from the water at 2:45 p.m.

He was airlifted to South Shore University Hospital, the place he was pronounced useless.

Suffolk County detectives have been investigating the fatality. A police spokeswoman mentioned she didn’t know if the seashore was open with lifeguards on the time of the drowning. 

Earlier, the National Park Service had mentioned the Sailors Haven seashore could be open Saturday after closing it because of the hazardous circumstances created by Hurricane Erin.

Fire Island National Seashore Superintendent Alexcy Romero couldn’t be reached Saturday evening. Earlier Saturday, he mentioned that lifeguards have been monitoring rip currents.

“We are keeping the swimmers close to the shoreline just for an abundance of caution,” Romero mentioned in an interview.

Ocean seashores throughout Long Island reopened to swimmers on Saturday because the remnants of the storm swing additional away from the East Coast, state and county officers mentioned.

Cupsogue Beach County Park in Westhampton Beach and Smith Point in Shirley reopened to swimmers, in keeping with the Suffolk County Parks Department. Outer seashores remained closed, the division wrote in a Facebook publish on Saturday morning.

State officers additionally introduced restricted swimming resumed at state park seashores.

Swimming was allowed at Jones Beach State Park and “knee-level wading” was permitted at Robert Moses State Park, in keeping with a information launch from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s workplace.

“Surf conditions remain a concern at Robert Moses State Park where only knee-level wading will be permitted due to strong undercurrents and rip currents forming,” Hochul mentioned within the assertion.

Conditions have been nonetheless too tough at Hither Hills State Park, which remained closed to swimming. Officials didn’t present an estimated reopening timeline.

East Hampton city seashores have been open however not permitting swimming due to hazardous surf, officers mentioned. Beach driving was allowed in permitted areas.

As individuals returned to the seashore, sturdy rip currents remained a priority.

“There’s still a high rip current risk,” mentioned Bill Goodman, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Upton, although the excessive surf advisory has ended. Forecasters mentioned the newest seashore circumstances confirmed waves within the 3- to 6-foot vary that will “gradually diminish” all through the day.

County well being officers encourage beachgoers to remain protected by swimming close to a lifeguard and taking note of posted flags indicating surf circumstances. If caught up in a rip present, swimmers ought to stay calm, float and swim parallel to the shoreline to keep away from exhaustion, according to officials.

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Lauren Franko, 30, of Stony Brook, dipped into the water with pals shortly after the seashore reopened.

“It’s a little cold, but it’s good,” she mentioned. “The tide is definitely pulling a lot. I didn’t go in that deep, honestly.”

She mentioned they got here to the seashore anticipating it to be open this morning however have been shocked at how a lot sand had been coated by the ocean water. As the tide was receding, nevertheless, she was hopeful the circumstances would enhance in the course of the afternoon.

Luciana Paccione, 15, of Holbrook, mentioned there was a noticeably bigger lifeguard presence on the seashore, together with some within the water.

“They kept giving us warnings when there was a rip current by us or when to move out and go back in the flag area,” she said after taking a break from swimming to eat lunch with a group of friends.

Tony Grego, 74, a former surfer who lives in Bayport, pointed to a the place a small wave crashed and cautioned how the underside possible drops two toes — a probably harmful spot. He mentioned he hoped “to see some motion” and surfers.

In his youth, Grego said, he would jump at the opportunity to surf during storms.

“They’d say hurricane, and I’d go, ‘Oh, nice!’ ” he said.

Tom Reilly, 60, of Holbrook said he was content to set up his beach chair and table on the boardwalk.

“I will not need to hoof it off the seashore,” he said. “We’ll simply hang around right here.”

By 11:30 a.m., seashore entry was restored and lifeguard stands returned to their posts within the sand. A handful of youngsters waded within the water in a swimming space, between crimson flags indicating tough circumstances.

Clear skies are anticipated to stay by means of Saturday evening, and Sunday shall be partly sunny with a excessive close to 81, the climate service mentioned. There’s a slight likelihood of a bathe or thunderstorm on Sunday evening, Goodman mentioned.

Newsday’s Tara Smith contributed to this story.