Can't swim at Brooklyn beaches after 6pm? Since when?

Maybe they're the fashion police?

I'd say I don't have any ID in my swimsuit, give them a fake name, and the finger as they walked off.

No lifeguards on duty.

No lifeguards listening to their headphones or talking up a beach babe on duty.

I thought that fascism went out with the Guiliani administration?
Has there been a resurgence - I must have missed that memo.

I know that swimming is "prohibited" after the lifeguards close up shop - but from the photos it did not look very late. Did the Baywatch Wannabes cut out early?

Pitu- Perhaps the parks dept or city is under pressure because of the recent drownings? ( The drownings happen every year---Rockaways and Riis have serious rip tides) After lifeguards are gone or in areas where there is no lifeguard, there is no swimming anywhere (all Long Island beaches, including Coney or Brighton). Anyone who goes to the beach knows though that this is not easily or always enforced. People are funny though. They want to be able to swim wherever and whenever they want, but if someone drowns then they want to hold someone responsible.

Maybe these ladies just got unlucky and got caught up in some kind of sweep this week? Storms last week and its looking like this weekend too. Maybe parks just wants to get people used to listening to them before we get a surge this weekend?

they can only ticket you when you come out of the water. just keep swimming until they decide to go home.

Pitu- I agree that the beach regulations don't necessarily accomodate the needs or desires of lots of people. I have no idea though how often the parks dep't pulls people out of the water and then actually writes tickets. When you are at Coney or Brighton, do they come by every half hour or hour and call people out? The other day I saw someone with a dog on the beach at Riis. I'm pretty sure that's against the rules during the summer season, but I didn't see parks come by and I don't know if their policy is to give a warning first or ask people to leave or ticket upon their own discretion.

I wonder if there will be a follow up?

Gothamist published an update, which I copied here:

UPDATE: Philip Abramson from the Parks Department has sent us the following statement.

"New Yorkers may only swim between the hours of 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. where lifeguards are on duty and signs are posted throughout our 14 miles of beaches to alert the public. New York State law does not allow “swim at your own risk.” As evident by the six drownings this year that happened after hours, swimmers should never go in the water if there is no lifeguard on duty. In order to protect public safety, the Parks Department works diligently to ensure that swimmers exit the water after hours. In this case, summonses were issued at 6:45 p.m. - 45 minutes after beaches close - and only after swimmers failed to comply with instructions to exit the water. If the constituent believes that our PEP officer used inappropriate language, we encourage her to file a claim with our Parks Advocate office."

I agree with what you're saying, but having grown up in the US and in New York, I'm not stunned anymore to find out that there are all kinds of things that I think I might reasonably be able to do, but find outside the law. I remember hearing on the radio that the drinking age was going to 21 here. Didn't happen in all states at the same time and well over 20 years later, I still think it's a pretty ridiculous policy and I am no longer anywhere near the age where I cannot get into bars. Very often, you see signs in parks or public places that tell you not to do things you might expect to do in parks or public places like ride a skateboard or fly a kite or throw a ball or listen to a radio or bring your dog. There are parks in the Battery Park/westside area where you can't walk your leashed dog. You also have to pay to walk on many beaches in New Jersey or Long Island or else you have to be a resident of the town to enter. Lots of crazy shit everywhere.

My guess is that an appeal for extended lifeguard hours might be a more successful campaign than a change in the swim at your own risk state policy, but that's just my guess. More likely, people will do what they always do..try to find a quiet place to break some unreasonable rules, keep their eyes out for the authorities and not get caught.

You'll probably find this link interesting because the tone is entirely different..but also by gothamist. Maybe once the press and pressure dies down about drownings and lifeguards, etc. things will relax?

http://gothamist.com/2009/08/19/nightswimming_persists_despite_reck.php