By Rob Seitzinger, Wildwood Leader, Wednesday, June 12, 1996

A Wildwood drowning incident on Saturday, June 9, off the Spencer Avenue beach has shaken up lifeguards here and left other beach patrols on the island concerned about informing the public when the beaches are protected.

Seamus Neil Cantwell, the 20-year old son of a Dublin, Ireland policeman who had saved his money in order to spend this summer in Wildwood, drowned about a half-hour before the Wildwood Beach Patrol took to their stands, which they do daily from 10 a.m. until 5.30 p.m.

“If only he would have waited a half hour,” said Wildwood Beach Patrol Captain Lou Cirelli. “We really have to stress again to people, don’t ever, ever go in the ocean or any body of water unless there is a lifeguard there. We say it over and over again, we have signs which say beaches are protected from 10 (a.m.) until 5.30 (p.m.) but the beaches are open from 6 a.m. until 10 at night,” leaving the decision to swim despite being in unprotected waters to the public.

Cantwell and two friends, Alan Adams and Niall Flaherty, had entered the 61-degree water around 9:30 a.m. before they were expected to report at 11 a.m. for their first day of work at Morey’s Pier, according to a Morey’s Pier and Mariner’s Landing spokesperson. They were to be screened to be lifeguards that day and then were to be begin the training program required to waterpark guards.

At approximately 9:45 a.m., Cantwell found trouble in six to eight feet of water. According to a press release issued by the Wildwood Police Department, about 20 members of the Wildwood Beach Patrol were on the beach running before reporting to their stands for duty. Lifeguards often train by running, swimming or rowing before and after guarding the beaches.

One of Cantwell’s friends approached the lifeguards to alert them to Cantwell’s predicament. One of the first guards to Cantwell, according to Cirelli, was Jason Coniry, a four-year veteran of the Wildwood Beach Patrol who is from, ironically, Ireland.

“Jason was first to the victim and he began to perform rescue breathing,” said Cirelli, referring to a lifesaving technique performed prior to getting a victim to a stable situation where CPR can be performed.

According to the release, Cantwell was unconsious by the time he was placed on the beach despite the fact that Wildwood guards responded immediately. the guards performed CPR on the beach until Wildwood Fire Rescue and police responded to the scene. Cantwell was transported to Burdette Tomlin Memorial Hospital but he could not be revived and was pronounced dead at 10:50 a.m. Cape May County Medical Examiner Dr. Elliot M. Gross performed an autopsy and found the cause of death to be drowning.

Cirelli said the victim was “a weak swimmer, just not a good swimmer, according to his friends.” He was in what Cirelli said was “moderate” water, “there were no rip tides or undertow.”

The incident left Wildwood guards shaken and surrounding patrols cautious.

“A lot of the guards are shook up,” said Cirelli. “It’s not because of anything they did or they’re responsible for, but for that group (which was running), it was the first time they ever saw a victim of a drowning and they were shook up. It was a very emotional thing for membes of the beach patrol.”

Cantwell’s friends returned to the Wildwood Beach Patrol headquarters on Lincoln Avenue to thank the guards for their efforts in reviving their friend, who will be returned to Ireland this week for burial.

“This is just a tragic thing which could have been avoided,” Cirelli said.

Second Drowning In Less Than A Year On Unguarded Beaches

The drowning of Seamus Neil Cantwell Saturday morning, June 8, was the second drowning incident which resulted in death on unguarded Five Mile Island beaches in less than a year.

In 1995, a man drowned off a Wildwood Crest beach after lifeguards there had cleared the water at 5:30 p.m. - as they do daily - before ending their work day. The dead man’s family is attempting to sue the Crest, the beach patrol, and the others who were on the beach at the time for negligence. According to Wildwood Crest Mayor John Pantalone, the suit remains in the hands of the borough’s insurance investigators and has not been settled.

Saturday’s drowning, which happened a few minutes before Wildwood guards reported for duty, occurred despite signs on each Wildwood beach which states beaches are guarded only between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.

Wildwood Crest has signs on each lifeguard stand and each street stating their hours, which are the same as Wildwood’s.

North Wildwood, which until now only had a sign at the Hereford Inlet beach, ordered 40 signs to be posted at all beaches and the signs should be ready within one week, according to Beach Patrol Chief Tony Cavalier.

Despite the signs, beach patrols up and down the county regularly struggle with those who insist upon swimming in unguarded waters either before or after hours.

“This is the tragic type of thing that can happen if there is no lifeguard right there and it’s what we want to avoid,” said Wildwood Beach Patrol Captain Louis Cirelli.

© 1996 The Wildwood Leader. Reproduced with permission.