Beach & Water Condition Watch

Why this is recommended

A closed beach, a rip current day or a lake with a toxic bloom is a ruined weekend at best and an emergency at worst. One morning brief before the drive is worth the summer of membership.

What the Tab covers

Who it is for

Families, surfers, swimmers and boaters, and every parent about to drive two hours to a closed beach.

When it runs

Health departments post bacteria results and closures in the morning; beach days get planned by noon

Scope

State and county health department closures and advisories for the 100 most visited US beaches and lakes; NWS rip current and surf warnings; NOAA and state harmful algal bloom and red tide reports; shark, jellyfish and marine life advisories from lifeguard agencies; water temperatures; sewage spill notices; pool and water park closures; lifeguard staffing and hours; USLA and EPA BEACON data; May to October

Suggested task

The objective your Tab starts with. You can edit every line of it once the Tab is yours.

Beach closures and swim advisories for bacteria and sewage, rip current and surf warnings, harmful algal blooms at the most visited lakes and coasts, jellyfish, shark and marine life advisories, water temperatures and red tide, pool and water park closures and lifeguard staffing changes for the 100 most visited beaches and lakes, with the beach or lake first.

Track swimming and beach conditions in the United States from May to October. Report only confirmed, source-backed items from the last 30 hours: closures and swim advisories for bacteria, sewage and chemical spills at the 100 most visited US beaches and lakes from state and county health departments and EPA BEACON; NWS high rip current and high surf warnings for populated coasts; NOAA and state harmful algal bloom and red tide reports; shark, jellyfish, Portuguese man o war and marine life advisories from lifeguard agencies; sewage and stormwater spill notices; pool and water park closures and lifeguard staffing reductions at major destinations; and water temperature extremes. Prefer health departments, NWS, NOAA, lifeguard agencies, USLA and established local reporting; ignore unverified social posts. Put the beach or lake first in the title with the state and the status. Use high severity for a closure at a top-25 beach, a high rip current warning on a summer weekend, or a bloom advisory at a lake with over one million annual visitors. Return no more than 8 findings. Push each as a finding with a title, a two-sentence summary, sections for the condition, who is affected, what to do, and the source link. If nothing qualifies, push nothing and submit the run receipt.