Hurricane Bill closes beaches
EDGARTOWN, Mass. (AP) — A weakening Hurricane Bill spun northward Saturday, churning up rough seas, creating dangerous riptides and closing beaches to swimmers up and down the eastern seaboard, including President Obama’s planned vacation spot, Martha’s Vineyard.
The Category 1 hurricane was expected to pass the mainland well off New England but was still packing high winds and waves that had safety officials urging extreme caution.
At Robert Moses State Park in New York, the beach was shut down as the high tide submerged the sand, though the beach opened later Saturday for sunbathing. Along some beaches in Delaware and New Jersey, no swimming was allowed.
“It’s just too dangerous right now,” Rehoboth Beach Patrol Capt. Kent Buckson said.
On Saturday evening, Bill had maximum sustained winds near 85 mph and was about 250 miles south-southeast of Nantucket, Mass., and about 550 miles south-southwest of Halifax, Nova Scotia, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami.
A tropical storm warning remained in effect Saturday night for Massachusetts, including the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, meaning tropical storm-force winds of 40 mph or more could hit the coastline in the next 24 hours.
The worst of Bill was expected to pass about 150 to 200 miles east of Martha’s Vineyard before Obama’s arrival today. The Obamas delayed their planned departure today from Andrews Air Force Base to midafternoon because of the weather, White House aides said.
On Saturday, nearly all south-facing beaches on the island were closed to swimmers and large signs blocked roads to shorefronts. Meanwhile, lifeguards used caution tape to rope off access points, and police patrolled the beach to enforce the closings.
“The concern we have now is that the riptides are very strong,” said lifeguard James Costantini. “There’s a very strong undertow.”
Longtime Vineyard vacationer Jack DeCoste, 69, of Plymouth, Mass., was unimpressed with the storm as he lounged in a beach chair in Edgartown.
The high waves that worried safety officials had surfers buzzing. Scott Fisher, 38, was at Nantasket Beach in Hull, where the morning’s moderate waves were expected to build throughout the day.
“People wait all summer for this,” he said.
On the other side of the continent, Tropical Storm Hilda has formed far out in the Pacific Ocean, according to the National Hurricane Center. Hilda is the eighth named storm of the Pacific hurricane season. It has maximum sustained winds near 40 mph.
On Saturday evening, it was about 1,930 miles west-southwest of the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja, California, peninsula and 1,225 miles east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii. It is moving west at 10 mph and is not threatening land. It is not expected to strengthen over the next few days.