Memorial Day Weekend kicks off summer 2018
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- Thousands of people will head to the beaches along New Jersey and Long Island this weekend as the summer season of 2018 begins!
Many will head to the Jersey Shore this weekend. Despite what seemed like an unusually stormy winter, New Jersey's beaches emerged in good shape, even after a series of March storms collectively dubbed the "Foureaster."
State environmental officials and a coastal engineering expert from Stevens Institute of Technology made the assessment Thursday in Asbury Park, previewing the state of the shore before the Memorial Day weekend.
Jon Miller of Stevens says the four March storms individually weren't serious. But together, they qualified as the fifth most significant storm over the last 34 years.
He says an average of 20 percent of the sand from recently replenished beaches was lot to erosion over the winter. But that sand is lying just offshore in sandbars that will gradually return to the beach by June or July.
Long Island will be another hot spot this weekend. The big event is the Bethpage Air Show at Jones Beach, which takes place Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The main attraction features the United States Navy Blue Angels, along with other countless amazing performers.
Spectators began arriving early Saturday morning to get a good spot for the air show. As the beach reached capacity, some highways leading to the show were closed.
WATCH "KICKOFF TO A LONG ISLAND SUMMER" SATURDAY (MAY 26) AT 7:00 P.M. ON CHANNEL 7 AND ABC7NY!
Traveling anywhere this holiday weekend will be more expensive. Gas prices are up across the country.
The price hit $5 a gallon Monday at one Mobil station on 11th Avenue and 51st Street in Manhattan.
Nationwide, the average price for a gallon of regular is $2.91. It's $2.97 in New Jersey. The statewide average in New York is now $3.04 and it's $3.08 in Connecticut. Topping all of them is New York City, with an average of $3.15.
According to the AAA, gasoline prices are rising on average by a penny every day. And just in time for the summer travel season.
The weather may also not cooperate. It's a mixed bag, according to AccuWeather, but necessarily a washout. Saturday is expected to be the best day of the holiday weekend.
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