Beaches across the tri-state region finally reopened Saturday after Hurricane Erin churned up dangerous surf — but the change came a day too late for former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was photographed being ordered off East Hampton’s exclusive Georgica Beach on Friday.
Blinken, 63, had set up a beach chair with a friend when lifeguards patrolling the sand told him the beach was closed due to rough conditions from the massive offshore storm.
Photos showed the ex-Biden official in a blue long-sleeve shirt and black shorts, barefoot, gathering up his towel, tote bag, and folded chair before making what tabloids dubbed a “walk of shame” back to the parking lot. Large waves were still pounding the shoreline in the background.
Beaches Reopen After Storm
The once 500-mile-wide Hurricane Erin had ballooned into a Category 5 storm in the Caribbean before barreling up the North Atlantic. Though the system stayed about 800 miles off New York’s coastline, it churned up high surf, rip currents, and dangerous conditions all along the East Coast.
By Saturday, most beaches across Long Island, New York City, and the Jersey Shore had reopened, though swimming restrictions remained in place at some spots.
“Even though Hurricane Erin has left our region, because it was such an extremely large storm, it has left a lot of the Atlantic still stirred up,” Fox Weather meteorologist Cody Braud told the New York Post. “The biggest thing is the high rip current risk that is still present up and down the East Coast.”
Temperatures for Sunday were forecast to hover in the low 80s in New York City and Long Island, and the upper 70s to low 80s along the Jersey Shore.
Blinken’s East Hampton Ties
Georgica Beach, a favorite for surfers, sits on the southern edge of East Hampton’s Apaquogue neighborhood, a well-known summer escape for the political and cultural elite.
Blinken is a longtime regular in East Hampton. In fact, he was spotted vacationing there on August 15, 2021, just hours before the Taliban seized control of Kabul, Afghanistan — forcing him to abruptly leave for Washington to manage the crisis.
His father, Donald Blinken, who served as U.S. Ambassador to Hungary under President Bill Clinton, lived seasonally on Lily Pond Lane for more than 50 years.
