The waters of the New Jersey shore turned deadly on Saturday as Tropical Storm Odette set off dangerous conditions on beaches without lifeguards.
One man died and several had to be rescued after dangerous rip currents sucked swimmers out to sea along short-staffed beaches throughout the day.
A 54-year old man drowned at the beach in Brick Township — where there have been no lifeguards on duty since Labor Day — despite two surfers’ efforts to save him, according to local reports.
Police and other agencies responded to a swimmer in distress around 12:30 p.m. on Saturday and the Coast Guard was able to get him out of the water.
But the man later died at Hackensack Meridian Ocean Medical Center in Brick Township two hours later.
He has not yet been identified out of respect for his family, police told Patch.
The National Weather Service in Mount Holly had advised beachgoers in a tweet to stay out of the water, made rough the storm.
“Rough surf leading to a higher risk for rip currents is expected today and continuing into tomorrow (due to Tropical Storm Odette which is well off shore and will be moving away from the region). Entering the surf is strongly discouraged!” NWS tweeted.
In neighboring Toms River, a Freehold man and two Connecticut women were hospitalized after they were pulled from the Ocean around the same time, according to Patch. One of the women, who was saved Seaside Heights firefighters on a jetski, remains in critical condition, according to Patch.
The scare prompted Toms River to shut down its beaches for the remainder of the day.
“Stay out stay alive,” The Seaside Heights Fire Department said in a Facebook post.