WARWICK, R.I. (WPRI) — It’s been more than three months since a new warning system was turned on at Conimicut Point Beach.

The warning system, which includes lights, sirens and an audio announcement urging beachgoers to stay out of the water, went live back in June.

Warwick Police Captain Robert Hart said that no one drowned or had to be rescued there over the summer.

The warning system was installed in July 2023 after the families of a man and young girl who drowned at nearly three years ago sued the city for failing to properly warn beachgoers of the dangers of the sandbar.

The city installed warning signs at the beach shortly after their deaths, which alert swimmers to the dangers of the rip currents. The warning system, however, is based off of the tides and activates when the water has risen high enough to become dangerous.

The warning system was supposed to take only a couple of weeks to install, but the city needed to address a number of glitches and concerns regarding its effectiveness.

Hart said there have been five reported drownings at Conimicut Point Beach dating back to 2008. The reason the sandbar is so dangerous, he added, is because it looks deceptively safe at low tide.

“What people don’t realize is that as the tide starts to change, that sandbar quickly disappears,” Hart explained. “It’s very easy to lose your footing.”

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Warwick Mayor Frank Picozzi, who lives near Conimicut Point Beach, knows the dangers of that sandbar well.

“I’ve seen the U.S. Coast Guard helicopters searching for swimmers,” Picozzi said.

That’s why Picozzi spearheaded efforts to create the new warning system. Picozzi said it was important to him that the warning system alerted beachgoers in a way that couldn’t be ignored.

The warning system’s blaring audio message repeats three times in English, Portuguese and Spanish, according to Picozzi. He said the warning system can be reprogrammed at any time to inform beachgoers of sudden and unexpected hazardous conditions.

Warwick IT Director Phil Carlucci created the system using equipment he already had on hand.

“We found a small little recorder and we created the audio message,” Carlucci explained. “We then set the timer up [using] a school bell software package that I found online.”

But will the new warning system save lives? Picozzi said only time will tell.

“We have the warning system now, but I don’t know if we can attribute it to that,” he said, referring to the lack of drownings and rescues. “We’re hoping [the warning system is] helpful.”

Kate Wilkinson ( kwilkinson@wpri.com ) is a Target 12 investigative reporter for 12 News. Connect with her on Twitter and Facebook .

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