Another big holiday weekend has arrived in the Coastal Bend. Families and visitors alike will head to area beaches for Memorial Day Weekend, but the conditions are not expected to be kind.
Due to some unexpected high tides, flooding and debris has made its way into recreational areas. This will make it hard for county crews to prep the beaches.
“It is making it really tough for us to get out there and prep these beaches for the holiday weekend,” Scott Cross, the director of Nueces County Coastal Parks said.
The debris all natural, such as big logs and wood, but as the debris and floods continue to take up more space, this decreases the area for people to park or settle.
“It is limiting the space that you have on the beach,” Cross said.
Floods and natural debris are only two of the things that have washed up on shore. Sea life is also making an unexpected appearance around the Packery Channel.
“There are green sea turtles that are washing ashore,” Dr. Donna Shaver of the Padre Island National Sea Shore said.
There is the urge to pick these turtles up and throw them back into the water, but both Dr. Shaver and Cross are urging otherwise. Throwing the turtles back into the water is not only a federal crime, but can cause more damage to the turtle.
Dr. Shaver is asking that anyone who spots a turtle contacts the National seashore immediately.
While the debris and flooding will be a handful for visitors for this holiday weekend, the beaches are not expected to shutdown. Cross is reminding those who do go to the beach this weekend to be aware of the strong rip current.
