OCEAN CITY, M.d - Swarms of jellyfish are making an appearance in the ocean.
Ocean City Beach Patrol says they had over 3,000 first aids recorded last week, with most of them being jellyfish stings.
Will Kennedy is in town with his friends. He says he's never seen anything like this.
"People just stand at the edge of the water, but they don't actually go in," he says. "When you see the waves crash, you can see the jellyfish and the mites inside the waves."
Patrol Captain Butch Arbin says crowds are getting more injured by stings than by rip currents.
"You know, they're staying out of the water because of the jellyfish and because of the lack of wave action and things like that in the ocean," he says. "We're not seeing the typical things that would cause rip currents, which are 98% of our rescues are rip current related."
High water temperatures, the salinity level of the ocean, and a lack of a strong current in the waves are factors for the appearance of these jellyfish.
Once the ocean has more wave action, Captain Butch says the number of jellyfish should decrease.
If you're determined to swim in the ocean, Ocean City Beach Patrol advises wearing a long-sleeved swim shirt to avoid injuries.
