DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – With spring break around the corner, Central Florida’s Ocean Rescue teams said they’re getting their staff ready right now to be all hands on deck.
Volusia County’s lifeguards waved the red flag for strong rip currents on Tuesday but getting those guard towers staffed has proved to be a challenge the last few years.
“We’re still a little short for our numbers from where we want to be,” said Deputy Chief Tammy Malphurs with Volusia Beach Safety.
Malphurs said they have a recruit class starting Monday with about 30 candidates right now but will hire as many as can pass the tryouts.
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“We’re hoping for more. If you want to come try out, come try out this Saturday,” she said.
She added they have about 200 seasonal guard openings.
The team is hoping its previously hired guards in college right now will fill a lot of those spots during spring and summer breaks but in the meantime, all current guards are being mandated to work for spring break.
There could be gaps where guards are staffed along the beach, though, because of storm damage from last year’s hurricanes.
“If you come to the beach, make sure to swim in front of those staffed lifeguard towers. Some of the towers have moved around because of the storms,” Malphurs said.
Brevard County Ocean Rescue said it’s keeping seasonal lifeguards on duty for a longer period now to staff up through spring break and is adding more signage on the beaches to show where they will be working.
Malphurs said in Volusia County, the storm damage is still prevalent in many beach access points—something else to plan ahead for.
“Most of our beach access ramps that were open prior to this are open but there are still a few completely damaged,” she said.
Malphurs suggested that beachgoers download the Volusia Beaches cellphone app. She said the beach safety team updates it every day, throughout the day, telling you which ramps and walkways are open and where the lifeguard towers will be.
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