NEW YORK — This summer, Americans across the country are going to have to find new ways to beat the heat. A nationwide lifeguard shortage is expected to leave thousands of public pools closed and beaches under 'Swim At Your Own Risk' rules.
NEW YORK — This summer, Americans across the country are going to have to find new ways to beat the heat. A nationwide lifeguard shortage is expected to leave thousands of public pools closed and beaches under “Swim At Your Own Risk” rules.
“Here we are this year, everybody wants to take a vacation, they want to go to their hotel with a garden pool. They want to go to their community pool. They wanted to go to the beach,” said Fisher. “But the problem is, we're almost starting from ground zero.” Fewer teenagers are entering the workforce, and, due to the pandemic, many lifeguard certification training sessions were postponed or canceled. Now entering the third summer of COVID-19, for those who may have already been certified, their two-year lifeguard certificates have expired, leading to an even larger deficit of working lifeguards.
Before the pandemic, the American Lifeguard Association would train about 300,000 new candidates every year, including nearly 50,000 lifeguards who were sponsored through the J-1 visa program. “In order to be a swim instructor, you have to be a lifeguard,” said Fisher, who said that the few swim instructors may be pulled to sit as a lifeguard rather than teach classes this summer due to the shortage. “The first thing you want to do is teach a child how to swim to prevent drowning… Some of these kids have not been in the water for two years, or ever.”
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
See Which New Jersey and New York Boardwalks Made List of Best in U.S.Five local boardwalks in New York and New Jersey are among the best in the country, according to a recent list by a national travel site.
Read more »
New push in NY to force gunmakers to adopt microstamping - New York Amsterdam NewsNew York this week became the second state to enact a law intended to force firearms manufacturers to adopt microstamping, a technology in which guns imprint tiny codes on ammunition cartridges as they are fired — creating a unique signature police could use to help solve crimes.
Read more »
New York DFS Rolls Out New Regulations for Dollar-Pegged StablecoinsAmid the collapse of Terra's algorithmic stablecoin, the New York watchdog has targeted regulations on such crypto assets.
Read more »
Governor: U.S. wants revisions to New York congestion pricing planGovernor Kathy Hochul said on Thursday the Biden administration is seeking changes in a long-planned congestion pricing plan for New York City that could further delay implementation of a system designed to reduce traffic in Manhattan and provide funding to improve mass transit.
Read more »
New York anti-abortion center firebombedAn anti-abortion pregnancy center outside of Buffalo was allegedly firebombed.
Read more »