For those of you who regularly visit your beach in Sunny Isles Beach, you will undoubtedly have noticed something extra and something extra special. Not only are there additional towers to cover the same amount of beach territory, there are additional lifeguards on duty to man those stations and that is extra special and extra safety for all who live and play on our beaches.
Currently 9 towers are operational. Several are newly constructed by our talented public works employees, under the supervision of Mike Fiorey. The design of the new towers includes storage areas for emergency rescue equipment and A.D.A. accessible beach wheel chairs. The strategic location of the towers allows for more coverage of the same amount of beach territory and allows for ocean rescues to take place while not abandoning or compromising coverage of the beach. The ocean rescue towers are numbered according to street location as follows: 192, 189, 186, 182, 178, 174, 170, 167, and 158. In essence; more coverage, more manpower, more equipment, more safety and quicker response time for our patrons. This is where your tax dollars are being invested wisely and efficiently in a life saving, life protecting fashion.
In a recent interview with Ocean Rescue Manager, Justin Broman, he shared some information with us about their job and their history. Did you know that every year, your city’s lifeguards rescue approximately 75-persons from some type of peril or drowning in the Ocean? Did you know that in one incident, as many as 5 persons were rescued at one time?
When rip currents occur or severe ocean conditions, no one is spared and multiple rescues can happen in a moment’s notice. In a single day, when swimmers don’t heed the warnings, hundreds of preventions are made by our Ocean Rescue Unit and numerous rescues as well. Their work is exhausting and at times life threatening for them as well as their victims. But they train, they compete, they train more and regularly and stay in shape.
That is why they have the tremendous reputation they have as “One of the Best” units on the Southeast coast of Florida. We are proud of them and city officials have provided them with the tools necessary for their success because the City Commission puts Safety and Services for residents and visitors ahead of everything.
So the next time, you walk the beach or go for a swim, even if it is part of your daily routine, when you pass by one of the many lifeguard towers, give a wave or a smile or offer a simple “Thank You” to those who help make Sunny Isles Beach safe.
