Jacksonville beaches issues safety reminders as beach season officially kicks off

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — Beach season is underway, and all the beach communities sent out their yearly reminders for people to stay safe and have fun.

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The “Opening of the Beaches” means beach season is officially here, and families are now coming from all over. For the event, the sun was shining, skateboarders were out, and families like Kosta Pamboukas’ were getting ready for a competition.

“[We] heard there was a sandcastle competition, and [we] wanted the boys to check it out because they like digging in the sand and building their own sandcastles,” he explained to Action News Jax’s Ben Ryan.

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It was a packed day at the beaches all ready for the official opening weekend, and while it’s always a lot of fun, the cities of Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach and Neptune Beach do have rules for visitors to follow.

The yearly reminders include no drinking alcohol in public on the beach, no public intoxication or anything that puts others in danger and you can’t have marijuana or other substances. There is also no disobeying instruction from ocean rescue or a law enforcement officer.

Read: Jacksonville Biker club speaks out about motorcycle safety after fatal crash

The reminder also comes just over a month after 3 shootings in Jacksonville Beach happened on the same night, leaving one person dead and hurting 3 others, including an innocent bystander.

Police said the shootings stemmed from roughly 250 to 400 people who gathered for planned fights. A flyer for the event was circulated online, and police said the shootings happened after the fights were broken up.

The rules are the reason why beachgoers like Jeannette Dohrty say they will always watch their family members.

“It’s why we keep our eyes on them constantly,” she said.

Read: FBI Jacksonville offering reward up to $10,000 for Jacksonville Beach shootings suspects information

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