Needles Also Found On Beaches In Point Pleasant, Seaside Park

MANASQUAN, NJ — It wasn't just Manasquan beaches where needles washed up last weekend: Two syringes were found in Seaside Park Saturday afternoon, and one lone needle was found in Point Pleasant Beach, said the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

Local health authorities responded to those beaches and found no additional debris. As a result, those beaches remained open.

Approximately 60 needles washed up on a Manasquan beach Saturday. The medical needles, used for things such as at-home insulin injections, likely came from sewer overflows in the northern part of the state and were carried by the wind and currents down the Jersey Shore.

There was heavy rain Thursday night, and older sewers in parts of New Jersey flooded and overflowed their contents into the ocean, said DEP spokesman Larry Hajna. It's a familiar phenomenon.

The needles were mixed in with other household garbage that washed up on the beach near the Manasquan Inlet.

Manasquan residents confirmed it wasn't just needles, but also thousands of pieces of trash that washed up on the beach.

"There were hundreds or maybe thousands of pieces of plastic," Manasquan resident Sandy Perry told CBS.

"Syringes, cut straws, syringe plungers, syringe caps, small plastic baggies," said Priscilla Mahajan, another resident.

Many residents volunteered their time cleaning up the beaches Saturday. The town of Manasquan also cleaned and thoroughly raked the beach. The beach was closed Saturday, but reopened for swimming Sunday, after three high-tide cycles.

Floatable debris washups involving large amounts of trash, plastic, wood or syringes are uncommon, says the NJ DEP.

"However, they can occur following heavy rainstorms in the northern part of the state and following days of persistently strong northeasterly or easterly winds and currents," said Hajna. "The New York City area experienced nearly three inches of rain on Thursday, August 20. That significant rainfall contributed to combined sewer overflows in the New York City area and contributed to the subsequent floatable debris wash-up in Manasquan."

The state of New Jersey asks residents to throw at-home insulin needles into the trash, and NOT flush them down the toilet.

The public can report trash and debris floating in the ocean to the NJDEP 24-hour hotline at 1-877-WARN DEP (1-877-927-6337).

First report: Syringes In Ocean Shuts Down NJ Beach