Ten of 13 suspended lifeguards had problems with certifications

The lifeguard company that used to guard Myrtle Beach from 67th Avenue North to 77th Avenue North will likely not make it back on the sand this year.

Myrtle Beach Lifeguards was pulled from the beach at the beginning of the month after the city began investigating whether all the company’s guards had the correct certifications, which signify that guards have met Red Cross standards. City Manager John Pedersen said that after a review, 10 of the 13 guards were found to have issues.

“Out of the 10 that didn’t have [certifications] ... there was a mix of folks that previously had certifications that had expired and folks that never had been certified,” Pedersen said

At City Council’s workshop Tuesday morning, Myrtle Beach Lifeguards owner Gene Hudson and his lawyer, Stephen Goldfinch, defended the company and emphasized its 38-year history.

“We’d like very much to go back to work,” Hudson told City Council Tuesday morning. “The whole company is out of work, all the lifeguards.”

Goldfinch, also a state senator, said he did not seek to reinstate the company’s contract with the city in the remaining months of 2016, but asked council to consider putting Myrtle Beach Lifeguards back on the beach next year.

He said all of the lifeguards had passed the appropriate training and that the issue was a matter of paperwork. Goldfinch said some guards’ certificates were at issue because the training facility the company used had not paid the Red Cross, which sets the standards for the certificates.

“Every single one of [the lifeguards] have met the requirements that the association puts forth,” he said. “Every single one of them have met the requirements the contract puts forth. The question is whether or not the certificates that were issued ... are valid.”

Pedersen said that the city was tipped off to an issue when someone at a hotel on Myrtle Beach Lifeguards’ 10-block stretch alerted the city that one guard was not watching the beach closely. He said the city found that this guard was not certified and in early July told the company to comply with safety standards that require guards to be certified from the first day they’re on the beach.

The company was not completely removed from the beach and replaced with other lifeguard groups until Aug. 3, after the city had discovered more widespread issues.

The Red Cross is reviewing the facility where some Myrtle Beach Lifeguards took guard tests, which Goldfinch said will probably be deemed inadequate for its failure to pay fees to the Red Cross. Pedersen he intends to wait to take official action on the matter until the organization finishes its review.

“It’s their certification, it’s their requirements that are in question and we really think that needs to play out,” Pedersen said. “They need to finish that investigation.”

One additional factor that contributed to the city’s interest in investigating Myrtle Beach Lifeguards, Pedersen said, was the drowning of a 14-year-old from Columbus, Ga. The boy vanished while swimming near 73rd Avenue North on June 16.

At council’s workshop this morning, Goldfinch called the drowning “unfortunate.”

“We all pray for the deceased, we all feel for what happened, we all understand the implications of what that means,” Goldfinch said. “That’s undeniable.”

This story was originally published August 23, 2016 at 3:34 PM with the headline "Ten of 13 suspended lifeguards had problems with certifications."