VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Beach Oceanfront lifeguards performed 16 water rescues over the four-day Independence Day weekend, a drastic number from the July 4th holiday weekend in 2023.
Of those 16 rescues, 22 people were pulled from the water. Last year, lifeguards collectively entered the water more than 200 times over the holiday weekend.
According to Gill, Chief of the Virginia Beach Lifesaving Service, ten of those rescues came on Independence Day itself. Pictures of the weekend showed jam-packed crowds at the Oceanfront, and despite the holiday weekend falling on a stretch where heat indexes reached 108 degrees Fahrenheit, the high temperatures don't appear to have added to the need for more water rescues this year.
"Of course you had all those people in the water. But it's an imposing time, I’m glad we don’t show the pictures at the beginning of the day maybe our guards don’t want to be here," Gill said.
Lifeguards also assisted in 16 medical incidents.
The bigger dilemma for lifeguards this year was children being separated from their families. Lifeguards recorded 166 "lost and found" incidents, 95 of which came last Thursday, July 4.
"You can see in the pictures, they take two steps turn around and you don’t know where you are or your family. Everything looks like a tent or canopy. For a kid who isn’t sure where they are they just keep walking and thinking their parents are just beyond the next lifeguard stand," Gill said.
Gill called the water rescue response load "standard" for a Fourth of July holiday weekend.
"We go to a lake but there’s not nearly as many waves. They’re not really used to the waves so that’s terrifying," Ohio tourist Hannah Simpson said.
The City of Virginia Beach does not yet have data on the visitation numbers for the holiday weekend but a spokesperson tells us they may have them by the end of the week.