WASHINGTON — The weather did not always cooperate during the Memorial Day weekend, but crowds still flocked to Ocean City for some time by the water.
“It was the unofficial start to summer, and we saw a lot of people coming out to kick that off,” said Ocean City spokeswoman Jessica Waters. “The beach was packed and the boardwalk was packed.”
According to Waters, nearly 300,000 people made the trip to the beach town during the long weekend.
The crowds came despite the overcast skies and periodic bouts of rain.
Ocean City Beach Patrol’s lifeguards deployed for the first day of the season on Saturday. They will be on duty along 10 miles of beach from 10 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. daily through the end of September. Lifeguards signal beachgoers to get out of the water beginning at 5:25 p.m.
“We continue our efforts to educate the public, warning them of the dangers of swimming on unguarded beaches,” said Beach Patrol Captain Butch Arbin. “We do whatever it takes to make sure people leave the ocean before we make that last turn to the west, leaving our beaches for the night.”
Although the temperatures are warming, the beach patrol urges visitors to stay out of the water during unguarded times.
“Remember our saying,” Arbin said. “Keep your feet in the sand until the lifeguard’s in the stand.”
