NYC updates lifeguard requirements to tackle shortage [Video]

NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — Beachgoers, break out your swimsuits! New York City beaches will be open on Saturday for the summer season after an arbitration panel has reached a decision for the city and lifeguard union that would expand hiring, which City Hall said will ensure beach and pool safety across the five boroughs amid a national lifeguard shortage.

“As we kick off Memorial weekend, the unofficial start of summer, we were able to blow the whistle and give warning that our pools and our beaches will be open,” Mayor Eric Adams said at a press conference on Friday.

Pools will lag behind Saturday’s beach opening and allow swimmers on June 27, and Adams said that the season will end for both on Sept. 8. During their open period, pools and beaches will be open from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. seven days a week.

“They are the places that we consider as the …