Sunbathers and Experts Testing Shore Waters in Irene's Wake

Aug. 30, 2011 — -- New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has ordered people back to the beach now that Hurricane Irene has blown through the state, although his own environmental agency is still testing waters for sewage, bacteria and debris churned up by the storm.

"Get the hell back on the beach," the notoriously blustery governor tweeted Monday as Irene faded away.

The state's Department of Environmental Protection issued a warning on its website Monday that raw sewage was spilling from a lake into the ocean near Asbury Park, just three blocks south of where Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno held a press conference encouraging visitors to make one last trip to the state's beaches for Labor Day weekend.

"We're open for business," Guadgno said.

Larry Ragonese, spokesman for the DEP, said the agency had begun testing all of the beaches up and down the coast for water quality and expected to have the results posted by the end of the week to njbeaches.org.

Hurricane Irene Churns Up Water, Debris on Beaches

"Obviously you have tremendeous runoff of stormwater," Ragonese said. "And everything that is on land and sea kind of meet. So we're looking for any kind of bacteria, anything unsual. We're also looking for debris, from docks or boats. You don't want a life vest popping through the water."

Ragonese said it was likely that stormwater from Irene could have overwhelmed sewer systems and caused overflows, and that they department would be monitoring the water closely.

State enviromental officials are testing beaches all along the Irene's path from North Carolina to New York as the summer ending Labor Day weekend approaches.

But as of today, beaches were open and sunbathers were frolicking in the water.

"It's nice down here, people are in the ocean. I poked my feet in and it was pretty warm and looked clean," said Laura Jannone, 56, of Red Bank, on the beach in Sea Bright, N.J. "The beach is a little different. The sand's packed down and there are shells everywhere and a lot of debris. But people are cleaning, and it's the same size."

Barbara Goldberg, of Maplewood, said she had trouble finding a beach that was open -- Sandy Hook remained closed due to power outages, and Ocean Grove had the sewage spill -- but ended up at Island Beach State Park in Seaside, N.J.

"It's lovely. There are quite a few people, a good beach crowd. I went in the ocean. You can't go too far, the lifeguards are blowing whistles. There must be some sort of pull. Up close it looks really clean, though from far back it has a greenish tint," she said. Goldberg said there was no visible damage to beach, and no signage warning people to avoid the water.

Jersey Shore Beaches Open for Labor Day

Until the test results come in, beaches and the ocean will remain open, Ragonese said.

"It's up to each town along the coast. They're the ones as far as safety that would determine that," Ragonese said.

Belmar mayor Matt Doherty said his town's beaches will all be open for the last big weekend of summer.

"We will be ready and open this Friday," Doherty said. "Labor Day Weekend is one of the three big weekends of summer. It's important for us as a town and for our businesses. It's their last chance to make money this summer."

Doherty said his beaches were beaten up by the storm surge and the waves, but crews were out cleaning and smoothing the sand beginning Monday in preparation for the weekend. The Shark River, an inland river that empties into the ocean at Belmar, would be tested for water quality, Doherty said.

"We'll asbsolutely be testing, along with the county and the state, to make sure the water is clean for this weekend," he said. "But the beaches will be open and ready, the weather's looking perfect, and so we're ready to have a great weekend down here."