Fingal and Birubi beaches are now being patrolled seven days a week, joining One Mile Beach which has lifeguards on duty every day of the year, after the season opened on Saturday, September 18. It will wrap up at the end of April 2022.

It will be the second summer that residents and, where they have been allowed, visitors have had to think of COVID restrictions and health measures such as maintaining a 1.5m distance from others when heading to the beach on top of surf safety messages.

"In addition to the current NSW Health Public Health Order, residents need to remember the usual beach rules apply," Port Stephens lifeguard supervisor Phil Rock said. "Swim between the red and yellow flags and follow the instructions of lifeguards, which includes following physical distancing."

During the surf season Port Stephens Council contracts the Australian Lifeguard Service to patrol Birubi and Fingal beaches during the week while volunteer surf lifesavers patrol the beaches on the weekends from 9am to 5pm.

Lifeguards patrol One Mile Beach seven days a week. While always starting at 9am, the time they pull the flags down depends on the time of the season.

During the peak of the season, December 20 to January 26, lifeguards patrol the beaches up to 6pm. Other times they will wrap up at 4pm or 5pm.

The COVID-19 pandemic did little to stem visitation to the Port's three patrolled beaches during the last patrol season.

Lifeguards clocked 738,786 visits to Birubi, Fingal and One Mile beaches between September 26, 2020 and April 25, 2021.

One Mile was the most popular choice with beach-goers, which saw an attendance rate of 337,546 followed by Fingal with 235,703.

The attendance rate to Birubi Beach was 165,537, significantly down from two seasons ago (2018-2019) when it was the most visited beach of the three (311,489 attendance).

Of those visits last patrol season, lifeguards made 42 rescues (26 at One Mile, four at Fingal and 12 at Birubi) and provided First Aid 298 times (230 at One Mile, 19 at Fingal and 49 at Birubi).

There was 55,105 preventative actions undertaken at One Mile - where lifeguards will speak with a person to prevent risky behaviour - 16,312 at Fingal and 15,779 at Birubi.

Throughout the last patrol season there was 1380 law enforcement actions undertaken at One Mile, 30 at Fingal and 104 at Birubi.

This season, Fingal and Birubi beaches are included in the shark surveillance program. Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicle, are deployed over the beaches to patrol for sharks, rips and other hazards to keep swimmers safe.

Surf Life Saving NSW president George Shales said volunteers are prepared for a second COVID-affected summer.

"The safety of our members is paramount, however we are concerned that if lifesavers are not present on our beaches, lives will be lost," he said.

"While it's not an ideal start to the season in many ways, we are confident the measures we have in place will enable lifesavers to continue to provide frontline beach safety services safely."

Across the state, including at the Fingal Bay and Birubi Point, surf clubs have received Personal Protective Equipment in the form of face masks, gloves, eye protection and sanitiser.

Modified training, first aid and CPR procedures are also in place and, Mr Shales said, it has been recommended to clubs to "reduce the number of lifesavers on patrol for the time being, to keep members as safe as possible".

Mayor Ryan Palmer said that while only residents of the LGA can enjoy the Port's beaches "for now", he is "feeling hopeful".

"Our local business and tourism industries rely on visitors throughout the holiday period, and I'm confident that it won't be long before we're welcoming visitors safely back to our region," he said.

"Until then, the community's safety is our top priority and I'm asking everyone to continue to do the right thing and show extra care when in public spaces this summer.

"Remember to follow NSW Health's guidelines and time your visit to beaches, parks or other public areas to avoid overcrowding at peak times.

"I'm so proud that Port Stephens has the highest double vaccination rate in NSW, and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

"By thinking of each other and working together we'll get there - we can reopen sooner."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: