Man dies after ‘possible drowning’ in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea; second death in less than month

A man died Friday afternoon after he was rescued from the ocean during a possible drowning in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, where there are no lifeguards, a topic that town officials have been considering for months since the death of 7-year-old Sloan Mattingly in February.

Authorities received reports of a “possible drowning” about 11:45 a.m. at 2 Commercial Blvd., and a bystander was attempting to save the man’s life when Broward Sheriff’s deputies in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea and Pompano Beach Fire Rescue arrived, the Sheriff’s Office said in an email Friday afternoon.

Pompano Beach Fire Rescue took the man to Holy Cross Health in Fort Lauderdale, where he was pronounced dead, the Sheriff’s Office said. Additional information was not released.

“Our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of the individual who passed away this afternoon after being rescued from the ocean,” Mayor Edmund Malkoon said in a statement on social media Friday afternoon. “I commend our first responders and the good Samaritan who assisted in the rescue.”

On May 22, bystanders tried to save a man after another possible drowning, and he was pronounced dead at the hospital. The Sheriff’s Office said it did not provide any update on that incident as of Friday.

Man drowns off Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, months after girl died in sand

Homicide and crime scene detectives are investigating.

In February, Sloan Mattingly, of Indiana, became completely buried underneath her 9-year-old brother, Maddox, when a five-to-six-feet deep hole they were digging in the sand collapsed on them. Sloan was pronounced dead after she was pulled from the sand without a pulse. Her brother survived.

Recently, officials passed an ordinance that prohibits digging holes in the sand deeper than 18 inches and requires any holes be filled in before leaving the beach, Malkoon’s statement said. They’ve also enacted a safety campaign in Sloan’s remembrance, “Sandcastles for Sloan,” that provides signs and information to local hotels and the visitor center about the ordinance prohibiting digging.

Immediately following the tragedy, town officials revived a debate they’ve long had about whether to spend the money for lifeguards, which they don’t currently employ. Sheriff’s Office and Pompano Beach Fire Rescue both intermittently patrol the beach.

A few residents who spoke at the February meeting discussing lifeguards gave differing opinions. Some said they believed adding signs at the beach would be enough and that lifeguards are not necessary. As of Friday, town officials are planning to use a survey to get feedback from residents on the issue.

A beach safety report included in the agenda for the town’s Tuesday commission meeting detailed three separate possible plans for lifeguards or beach patrol of some kind on its two-and-a-half miles of shore: An option with the Sheriff’s Office that would cost over $765,000 annually; lifeguards and ocean rescue that would cost over $1 million annually; and beach patrol by code officers that would cost no more than $260,000 annually but would not provide medical assistance or rescue, according to the agenda.

Employing four full-time Sheriff’s Office deputies to patrol the beach would require creating an entirely new service of BSO that does not exist. Deputies are not currently trained specifically for water rescue, except for the Dive Team and Marine Patrol Unit, and beach patrol deputies would require new hybrid uniforms and equipment and other logistics would need to be considered, Lauderdale-by-the-Sea District Chief Capt. William Wesolowski wrote in a May 29 memo to the town manager. It would cost over $860,000 for its first year and $765,920 annually, the beach safety report said.

Pompano Beach Fire Rescue provides fire rescue services to Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, and while Pompano Beach’s fire department has a division for Ocean Rescue, there has not been a proposal for Pompano Beach to provide lifeguards to the town, according to the report. Town officials would need to decide how much of the over two miles of beach would be guarded and where guard towers would be placed.

Staffing three lifeguard towers between the north side of Anglin’s Fishing Pier and El Prado Park was estimated to be about $1.4 million in its first year, with staffing and equipment making up the bulk of the cost. Purchasing three towers was estimated to be nearly $400,000, according to the report. It was estimate to cost over $1 million each year.

Lastly, the least expensive option proposed would be having two code enforcement officers as “beach ambassadors,” who would focus on enforcing the town’s ordinances. They would not provide any medical or lifeguard services, the report said, and would cost between $150,000 to $300,000 in its first year and between $130,000 and $260,000 annually.

Malkoon said in his statement that a new code enforcement officer is included in the town’s 2024-2025 proposed budget and will patrol the beach to ensure ordinances are followed. The commission may also consider a study to determine whether to seek lifeguards.