Syringes Wash Up in Ocean City - Several Beaches Closed

2008-08-29
Syringes wash up in Ocean City, several beaches are closed
By MICHAEL MILLER Staff Writer, Press Of Atlantic City, 609-463-6712
Published: Friday, August 29, 2008

OCEAN CITY - More Cape May County beaches were closed Thursday after medical waste washed up, this time in Ocean City.

The county Health Department closed nine beaches between 30th and 46th streets and on Seaspray Road after six hypodermic syringes and five syringe pieces were found. Beaches in Avalon were intermittently closed this week after nearly 200 intravenous needles were found on the island's north end. Beaches in Avalon reopened Wednesday without incident. Ocean City expects to reopen the beaches today after scouring them at 8:30 a.m. following the morning high tide. The syringes found in Ocean City are different from those found in Avalon, and city officials said the incidents appear to be unrelated. A sweep of the beaches also turned up a saline drip-bag near the dunes at 46th Street, Business Administrator James Rutala said. "But that could have been there for weeks," he said.

The state Attorney General's office is offering a $10,000 reward for information identifying the source of Avalon's medical waste. Likewise, Ocean City police are storing the needles as evidence for potential criminal prosecution. County Health Director Kevin Thomas said the needles in Ocean City and Avalon might have been dumped by someone to save money. "There is an expense to disposing of medical waste," he said.

Beachgoers are more at risk of tetanus from a rusty needle than blood-borne pathogens, he said. "When the syringes are in the water, any viruses or pathogens die very quickly in the direct sunlight," he said. But days before Labor Day weekend, the news could not be much worse for a resort such as Ocean City: The mere thought of needles made barefoot beachgoers cringe Thursday. "I was totally disgusted. It's unsettling," said Colleen Casadei, of Havertown, Pa. She and her family are spending the week in Ocean City in a rental home off the 38th Street beach. "I had to tell my children you can't go in the water because there might be needles in there," she said. "I couldn't believe I was saying that." Her family had a similar experience last September when a handful of syringes washed up on beaches from Ocean City to Wildwood. Her vacation home last year was also on one of the affected beaches. The source of that medical waste was never identified. So for now her four children must content themselves with building sand castles near the dunes. "I don't feel comfortable with them being in the water," she said. Joe Fusco, of Holland, Pa., and his family sat on beach chairs more than 100 feet from the water's edge on 38th Street. It was as close as they dared venture near the incoming surf.
"How does this happen?" he asked. "We love Ocean City. It's our favorite place. We manage to swing a week here, and now part of it's ruined. "I'm totally disgusted and disappointed."

Police ask anyone who finds suspicious debris on the beach to contact them at 609-399-9111.