Virginia senators want to limit the ways a beach umbrella can kill you
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Beachgoers on Chincoteague Island in 2016. Photo: Bastiaan Slabbers/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Virginia senators, and a Henrico resident, are pushing for beach umbrella safety standards that would limit the possibility of one going airborne and causing injuries.
Why it matters: The chances of being impaled by a beach umbrella are low, but they're not zero.
State of play: ASTM International, with contributions from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in April proposed requiring beach umbrellas to be anchored in the sand securely enough to withstand wind speeds of up to 30 mph.
- But those safety measures are not yet finalized.
- Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine wrote to the CPSC earlier this month asking the commission's Beach Umbrella Task Group to "move swiftly and with thoroughness" to "maximize safety for beach goers."
Zoom in: The Virginia senators began calling attention to the dangers of flying beach umbrellas as early as 2019, but Ed Quigley from Henrico has been doing it for nearly a decade after an umbrella went through his left eye in 2015 at Bethany Beach, Delaware.
- He told WTVR earlier this year that the umbrella's pole shattered his eye socket and led him to having brain surgery.
- Quigley helped create the warning label that the safety standards recommend beach umbrellas include. It shows a rogue umbrella flying in the wind and impaling a person.
- In a safety alert in May, the CPSC also advised buyers or renters to look for a label that says "MEETS ASTM F3681 FOR WIND SPEEDS UP TO 30 MPH."
By the numbers: Kaine and Warner's letter said the CPSC estimates nearly 3,000 people nationwide go to the ER every year because of umbrella-related incidents.
- One happened in Florida in late June, when an umbrella went through a woman's leg.
- A South Carolina woman in 2022 died after an umbrella impaled her. So did a Chesterfield woman celebrating her birthday in Virginia Beach in 2016.
How to safely use beach umbrellas, per Quigley, who has a site called "beach umbrella safety:"
- Avoid screw-type sand anchors.
- Use anchor devices that are safe in wind speeds up to 30mph and provide "at least 75 pounds of resistance" to the wind.
- When buying an umbrella, look for a vented fabric top and sturdy shaft and spokes.He recommends the "BeachBUB" (starts at $104) and the Solbello on Amazon (priced at $179).
The bottom line: "A windblown, airborne beach umbrella is like a javelin with a sail attached," Quigley says on his site.
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect that the CPSC contributed but did not create the safety standards proposal.