WILDWOOD CREST – Wildwood Crest Commissioner Joseph Schiff proposed looking into a lightning detection system to protect beachgoers from possible lightning strikes.
Schiff proposed the borough investigate a lightning warning system that sends a wireless signal to a siren, which would alert beachgoers to get off the beach. The Strike Guard Lightning Warning System, for example, can detect the presence of lightning up to 20 miles away.
Schiff said this is an idea he has been looking at in light of lightning strikes on beaches, such as one that struck a lifeguard stand in Ocean City, Maryland, in June 2022.
The previous year, a 19-year-old lifeguard in Berkeley Township, Ocean County, was killed and seven other people injured, including three other lifeguards, by a lightning strike.
Schiff said there can be up to 200,000 people on the beaches at one time, so the results of a strike could be devastating.
He said if the borough moved forward with the warning system, he would like to get North Wildwood and Wildwood on board and share the cost of the system. He said he would look for money to help pay for the system.
Schiff said a public information campaign would have to be developed to teach beachgoers about the system and how they should respond.
“The bottom line is we have to be proactive and get people off the beach. Last year, there was a problem in Ocean City (Maryland), and I believe someone got struck. We’re trying to do something to make the beach a little bit safer,” he said.
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