'Doesn't look like a beach day;' few people venture onto St. Lucie County beaches

ST. LUCIE COUNTY — Some beaches were largely vacant Thursday afternoon as strong winds pushed north and rough surf pounded the shore, though a handful of people ventured out to take a peek at the conditions.

Wayne Pilkerton, 63, of Port St. Lucie, walked onto the sand at Dollman Park Beachside to check out the conditions from Hurricane Helene.

“Doesn't look like a beach day,” Pilkerton said, noting he was surprised no surfers were in the water.

St. Lucie County Ocean Rescue lifeguards were not on duty Thursday, as officials recommended avoiding the beaches because of high chances for heavy surf and rip currents.

To the south at Waveland Beach, Polly Donato, 52, and her husband were the only people who made their way out onto the sand. Donato said they are from Ohio and had been vacationing on Siesta Key in Sarasota, but had to leave.

“It’s still pretty windy,” Donato said of the conditions here.

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She said they encountered no traffic on the drive from the west coast, nor did they experience issues finding lodging.

“We were just coming to kind of see what it was like over here, and see the waves and stuff from the storm,” Donato said. “I know you guys would get some effects of it, but we still have sunshine.”

Back on Dollman Park Beachside, Robert Nicholas said he walks on the beach every day. He said he was picking up trash and said he’s used to hurricanes because he’s from Florida.

“I don’t always pick up trash on my walks, but today I saw it as a challenge,” Nicholas said.

TCPalm reporter Olivia Franklin contributed to this report

Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com .

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: 'Doesn't look like a beach day;' few people venture onto St. Lucie County beaches