Daily beach report
Welcome to a new service offered by Ballina.Info in conjunction with Australian Lifeguard Services. Northern NSW Lifeguard Co-ordinator STEPHEN LEAHY will report on daily beach conditions and incidents in the Far North Coast region, and will provide a forecast for beach conditions for the following day. Stephen also will provide a daily Water Safety Tip:
Blustery winds cleared most beaches by mid afternoon. Surf conditions became choppy and rips increased along the coast. Here’s what happened on lifeguard patrolled beaches today:
Salt, (South Kingscliff)
A reasonably quite day with only 2 minor first aid treatments being performed.
Lennox Head
The blustery conditions kept Lifeguard Anthony busy today with more than 35 people advised to move back in the flags after the side current took them outside the safe swimming area.
Shelly Beach, Ballina
The beach wasn’t opened until 11.30 this morning with the ongoing sighting of a 2 metre shark very close to swimmers in shallow water. It was agreed to leave the beach closed until the tide came in and allowing the shark to leave the shallow gutter it was in. Fifteen swimmers were warned about straying outside the flags, one surfer got too close to the flags and 25 people were removed from the water at the commencement of the shark alarm.
Main Beach, Yamba
A shark alarm closed the beach for 10 minutes at 11.40 am. Eleven people were cautioned about swimming outside the flags and two children were treated for minor cuts.
Tomorrow’s Forecast:It’s likely that the wind will decrease overnight but it will then increase again later tomorrow afternoon. We should also expect waves of around a metre but ocean conditions will become choppy with strengthening rips after lunch.
Today’s Water Safety Tip:There are blue flags usually erected each side of the red and yellow flag; these indicate the boundary of the surfcraft area. Surfcraft, including surfboards, are not permitted inside the blue flags and must certainly remain outside the swimming area, indicated by the red and yellow flags.
