TYBEE ISLAND, Ga. () — Tybee Island’s Fourth of July is one of the busiest times annually, and it posed a significant challenge for lifeguards due to the large crowds.
Tybee Island Ocean Rescue reported that lifeguards were fully staffed for the holiday weekend, with 24 guards on duty on the Fourth of July—the highest the team has probably had in years. Lifeguard Supervisor Cyrus Sheppard explained it was essential.
“We’re expecting a significant influx of people on our beach,” Sheppard stated. “Additionally, with the tropical storm just off the coast, it introduced water hazards that we don’t usually face throughout the year, except during hurricane season. Consequently, we opted to fly the red flags later in the day to address that.”
On the Fourth of July, guards responded to 26 water assists,12 rescues, 20 medicals, three requiring EMS transport, three jelly stings and over 2,000 advisements.
Sheppard said it was a day that put their team to the test.
“We had multiple rescues going on at the south end jetty,” he said. “So, just as we were about to get off the beach, there were multiple people that got pushed into the jetties as we were coming off the beach. So, we responded back to 18th Street and sent multiple people in the water to grab them and bring them back and wrap them up, patched them up.”
Sheppard said, “A good amount of people had gotten caught up on those rocks. Immediately after, as we were coming back to relieve ourselves, we had just gotten here to drop supplies off, we got dispatched back to that same spot.”
With the crowds and dangerous conditions, the head of lifeguards said some on staff may have felt they were being pulled in all directions.
“We’ve had issues with staffing, but I think going into the future, staffing is a big one and being able to train those people up to par with our standards is a big thing,” Sheppard said.
is told lifeguards are still being for the 2025 season.
