WASHINGTON — Jessica Waters can see the Atlantic Ocean from her Town of Ocean City office.
“I can see the waves crashing, and the sea is a little angry, I have to say,” said Waters, the town’s communications manager.
The shifting course of Tropical Storm Florence, she said, means that the severity of the impact may be reduced. But the town will probably see some street flooding “especially during high-tide cycles,” Waters said.
That, she added, can be alarming to visitors. For year-round residents, tidal flooding is not unusual.
“When it rains, and when we get a lot of water in our bay, that water doesn’t have anywhere to go,” she said, so some flooding can occur.
Ocean City’s famed Beach Patrol is still on duty, but Waters recommends against testing the ocean. If you are visiting and do want to swim, she said, “just make sure it’s when a lifeguard is on duty.”
And even then, she said, be sure to swim close to where the lifeguard is stationed.
While a number of weekend events are expected to go on as scheduled, Waters said, Ocean City’s residents are thinking of their neighbors to the south.
“Certainly we want to extend prayers to the people of North and South Carolina who are really getting the brunt of this storm,” she said.
