Neptune township police don't want you jumping into the Shark River Inlet from the train and Highway 35 bridges. "We don't wish to stop anyone from having fun, however, we think most would agree the dangers posed outweigh the fun," officials said Thursday in a post on the department's Facebook page.
"The Neptune Township Police Department and ANSWER Water Rescue Team understand that 'kids will be kids,' but remind all that there are plenty of ways to have at the shore in the summertime besides jumping off of bridges, especially in such a dangerous spot."
Among those dangers are strong tidal currents, submerged rocks, boat traffic, and vehicles on the bridge moving too fast to stop for pedestrians.
There's legal danger, too: as the bridges and surrounding property belong to NJ Transit, the New Jersey Department of Transportation, and assorted private owners, the divers are trespassing, officials said.
And as if the personal danger and law-breaking were not enough, officials said a water rescue call "immediately triggers a large-scale emergency response" that involves surrounding police departments, the US Coast Guard and/or the New Jersey State Police, New Jersey Transit police, the Area Network of Shore Water Emergency Responders (ANSWER) boat, rescue swimmers, divers, and emergency medical services and office of emergency management staff from surrounding towns.
Responding to calls about people casually diving from the bridges "takes time for leadership to confirm the incident is a non-emergency and much of those responders have already arrived on scene, taking resources away from their respective communities and the beachfront," officials said.
"The Neptune Township Police Department and ANSWER Water Rescue Team understand that 'kids will be kids,' but remind all that there are plenty of ways to have at the shore in the summertime besides jumping off of bridges, especially in such a dangerous spot."
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