Rehoboth Weekend Update #11 of 15

WEEKEND #11, 2024

August 5, 2024

Rehoboth Beach, Delaware

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BOATERS AND REHOBOTH FIREFIGHTERS RESCUE DOG IN TREE OVER CANAL
It's an odd story with a happy ending.

Tammy, Emily and George Hart were instrumental in rescuing this adorable dog found clinging to a tree over the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal. The Harts were out boating around 11:20 a.m. this past Sunday and called for help. "My daughter, Emily," Tammy writes, "has an interest in birds and enjoys sitting at the front of the boat as we go down the canal with binoculars and she saw the dog high up in the tree."

Photos courtesy Tammy Hart

George called 9-1-1 from the boat while Tammy and Emily waded through the thigh-high marsh. Rehoboth Beach VFC personnel arrived at the end of Thompson Court in Canal Corkran and devised a rescue plan. They took a ladder onto the Hart's boat to get it to the tree to rescue the dog.

The plan worked! The rescue took about 30 minutes from start to finish.

"They have yet to find the dog's owners. We are on the list to adopt the dog if no one claims her," Tammy says!

Photo courtesy Delaware Animal Services

The Brandywine Valley SPCA in Georgetown took custody of the dog. It had no collar and no microchip.

More info on the rescue is posted on Facebook and the Delaware Animal Services website.

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ONLY FIVE DAYS UNTIL REHOBOTH BEACH ELECTION DAY!

With less than a week to election day, the four candidates for the two Rehoboth Beach commissioner seats are keeping busy.

Rachel Macha held a rally at Aqua this past Friday. Among those attending were former Commissioners Dick Byrne and Pat Coluzzi as well as past and current planning commissioners.

Photo courtesy Kirk Monroe

Macha says spending, fiscal responsibility and communication and transparency are the three top priorities for her if elected.

Also attending the rally was Macha's new puppy, Louie, a nephew of Duke, her Bernese mountain dog who died earlier this summer.

Craig Thier says he and his wife, Lorrie, continue to canvas daily. She spent the latter part of last week in the Rehoboth Beach Country Club neighborhood while he followed up in person with the daily requests from voters interested in hearing about his campaign.

Mark Saunders says he too continues to meet with groups of voters to hear what they would like to see from the Board of Commissioners going forward. "They all agree financial responsibility is key, and hope future large expenditures will be vetted by the public before being voted on," he said. "Deauville Beach is still a hot topic, and most want us to reopen negotiations as soon as possible to get this beach back under city ownership," Saunders added.

Suzanne Goode says she is "Slogging away at the doors and the personalized emails to voters." She will be meeting with voters today, Monday, at 3 p.m. at the Rehoboth Avenue Starbucks.

According to the city, as of Friday, 337 of the 465 absentee ballots, about 72 percent, that were requested have been returned to the city.

This is how it compares with the last three elections. Absentee ballot requests spiked in 2020 because of the pandemic.

Registered voters for 2021: 1703 (28 fewer than 2020)
Number of voters: 618
Number of absentee voters: 572
Total voters: 1190 (70 percent of registered voters; 15 percent fewer than 2020)

Registered voters for 2020: 1731 (230 more than 2019)
Number of voters: 325
Number of absentee voters: 1146
Total voters: 1471 (85 percent of registered voters; 16 percent more than 2019)

Registered voters for 2019: 1501 (34 fewer than 2018)
Number of voters: 701
Number of absentee voters: 335
Total voters: 1036 (69 percent of registered voters; 3 percent more than 2018)

Video from the July Rehoboth Beach Homeowners' Association candidate forum is online. Candidate bios/statements are also on the RBHA website. The Rehoboth Beach municipal election will be this coming Saturday, August 10. Additional info is on the city's website.

350+ DEDICATED CYCLISTS "BIKE TO THE BEACH" DURING HEAT WAVE

Ambulances and paramedics responded to the Dewey Beach Lion's Club this past Friday as Bike to the Beach riders started arriving in the smothering heat around 3 p.m.

Ambulances from Georgetown and Lewes came to assist Rehoboth Beach EMS and several Sussex County medics after multiple riders arrived suffering heat-related medical troubles.

Glenn Marshall, Sussex County EMS spokesman, says 15 were seen by EMS and two were taken to the hospital. Neither appeared life-threatening, he added.

Lt. Clifford Dempsey, DBPD spokesman, said everybody did what they could do to prevent the medical heat-related problems from happening but it was just too hot. He did add that it is helpful for groups like this one to apply for a permit so the town is at least aware of the event. Dewey officials were not expecting the group's arrival, he added.

In a statement provided on Saturday by Melissa Parsons, the Bike to the Beach executive director, it says that the more than 350 riders raised $450,000 to support autism and disabilities. This was the ride's 17th year.

Each cyclist rode between 25 and 100 miles to Dewey Beach, with several starting in Washington, D.C. and Baltimore. This was the 50-mile start line near Denton.

Photo courtesy Melissa Parsons

"The higher than normal temperatures yesterday did create some hurdles," the Bike to the Beach statement continues, "but partners and staff stepped in to ensure riders were well cared for. We couldn't have done this without our volunteers, who worked tirelessly to fuel, hydrate, and cool the riders throughout the day." This is one of those important rest stops.

Photo courtesy Melissa Parsons

The group provided a detailed guide to riders which even mentioned an extreme heat policy with earlier start times and ride adjustments.

"We extend our deepest thanks to the local police and EMS teams for their support and to the Town of Dewey, local residents, and visitors for their understanding and support," the statement reads. "Our riders' safety is our number one priority, and each year we strive to create the best experience for our riders. We couldn't do this without our local partners, our autism community partners, and all first responders," it adds.

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SYSCO TRUCK GETS CAUGHT ON NARROW REHOBOTH STREET

The driver of this Sysco tractor-trailer stopped his truck in the "third block" of Olive Avenue when it became evident that he wouldn't be able to negotiate the narrow street around 2:10 p.m. last Thursday.

The truck had less than an inch to spare on one side, and not much more on the other. It appeared the trailer was going to collide with the parked Honda Passport with additional forward movement while the cab was going to hit cars parked on the other side.

So officers came up with a plan. The Honda was registered to a resident near Lewes, so they asked a state trooper to visit the residence. The trooper was able to contact the owner through the video doorbell. The driver soon returned to move the Honda providing the Sysco truck with enough space to continue without any damage! It took them about 35 minutes to reopen the street.

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CG, DNREC SEARCH REHOBOTH BAY AFTER FINDING DEBRIS

Just before noon last Friday, officials received reports of debris floating west of the Delaware Seashore State Park in the Rehoboth Bay. One report even suggested that it looked like a floating body.

Photo courtesy David Koster (Portraitsinthesand.com)

DNREC and Coast Guard vessels conducted a search and were assisted by this Coast Guard helicopter from Atlantic City. The other helicopter was Chopper 16.

Image courtesy ADSB Exchange

A spokeswoman for the Coast Guard later said there was no sign or reports of any boating accidents or missing vessels. So they suspended the search around 2 p.m.

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BABY HARBOR SEALS FOUND IN DELAWARE BAY!
Is the Delaware Bay their next birthing ground?

"We had an interesting week with a couple more seals," says Suzanne Thurman from the MERR Institute. "They turned out to be harbor seal pups that had just been weaned, which means they must have been born somewhere here or nearby," she explains.

Photo courtesy Suzanne Thurman, MERR Institute

"Harbor seals are born in the summer but always up in New England, so this is a first for our area. One seal was in and out of the water between Cape Shores and Cape Henlopen State Park. It ultimately stayed in the water. It was in good shape other than being a bit thin, which is typical for seals that have recently been weaned," she added.

The other seal was at Prime Hook Beach but returned to the water when people approached.

The next MERR fundraiser sunset dolphin tour is set for August 11.

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DEWEY OFFICER RENDERS AID IN RUDDER LOT TO BLEEDING MAN

The first week in August is peak season and that was certainly the case for the Dewey Beach bar scene this past weekend.

Just after 1:10 a.m. Sunday, police found a man severely bleeding from his thigh in the Rusty Rudder parking lot. Fortunately, a Dewey officer was equipped with QuikClot and a tourniquet and began treating him almost immediately, says Lt. Clifford Dempsey, DBPD spokesman.

Officers first assumed he had been stabbed as he had a serious wound. So they secured a crime scene. Police later discovered a blood trail and followed it to a sign mounted nearby where they suspect he somehow impaled his leg. Police are still investigating as the injured man remains hospitalized.

A few blocks away about five minutes later police found a woman who had been punched in the face somewhere on Bellevue Street.

The assault did not take place at the Bottle & Cork, Lt. Dempsey pointed out, but that's where police found the victim. Officers arrested two women and a man as the victim was taken to the hospital. Lt. Dempsey says the victim and the female suspect who struck her know one another.

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ZELKY'S OPENS SNOWBALL SHOP ON REHOBOTH'S BOARDWALK
New shop offers snowcones in three different sizes and in 19 different flavors!

Zelky's Sno-Balls grand opening was last Wednesday and almost immediately attracted customers during the heat wave.

"I think it's more like a Baltimore thing," says Matt Weiner, Zelky's general manager. "This is what everybody got when I was a kid growing up in Baltimore," he explained.

"We've got the quintessential flavors like sky lite, egg custard, chocolate, tutti frutti and a ton of others. I think we have 19 right now total," he said noting that he is using the Koldkiss snowball syrup right now for all 19 flavors.

He plans to stay open into the off-season and they are considering "happy hours for kids" after school from about 3 to 6 p.m. with discounts on snowballs. "The idea is bring them over for an after-school treat," he added, noting that they are considering this through October.

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NEW WORK AT GEL Z ART AND SURF GALLERY
Celebration for local composer and artist, Guillermo Silveira, set for August 25.

Angelica "Gel" Clemmer has rearranged her gallery and added some exciting fresh work. She's joining Guillermo Silveira exploring his fascination with "looking up" by hanging artwork that looks down from the ceiling.

Why? "The whole thing about hanging the painting from the ceiling is that everybody right now is always looking down," Clemmer observes. Here she is with her dog, Iggy, and one of Silveira's photographs on the ceiling.

"If you look around, you walk around, everybody's on their phones looking down. So it was Guillermo's idea," she points out. "People have to look up and stop looking down. I guess that's the whole concept, to contemplate art in a different way, looking up instead of us always looking down," she explains.

She has provided the acrylic paintings on the ceiling and Silveira provided the photography. They are appropriate ceiling/sky themes, things that we might notice if we looked up. He features local subjects, such as the underside of a seagull or the big dinosaur from the new mini-golf course.

Her theme is outer space such as a distant planet, a star constellation and a spaceship.

Mark your calendar! The gallery will be celebrating, "Looking Up 40's Toast," Silveira's 40th year of living in the United States, on Sunday, August 25, from 6 to 9 p.m.

This is Clemmer's third year here on 2nd Street between Rehoboth and Wilmington Avenues and her fourth location in the Rehoboth-Dewey area! She helps support many local artists by exhibiting their unique pieces of art in her shop, Gel Z Art and Surf.

PHOTOS OF THE WEEK

Dewey Beach sunset by Evan Stoddard ...

Brilliant backlit clouds at Delaware Seashore State Park by Susan Howard

7-year-old granddaughter carries her chair to the beach by Alice Stockdale ...

Photography contests: Delaware Beach Life, Rehoboth Reflections, Ocean Photo, Delaware Farm Bureau, O.C. Photo

OTHER NEWS:

UPDATE ON LAST WEEK'S MISSING/STOLEN WHEELCHAIR--- Rehoboth Beach police received a report of a missing or stolen wheelchair taken from Christian Street sometime on the previous Sunday, July 28. The wheelchair was a rental and was mistakenly collected by the rental company, says Lt. Mark Sweet. The wheelchair was returned to the renter, he added.

CHEMICAL TRUCK IN CRASH CATCHES FIRE--- Firefighters responded to a crash involving a truck hauling chemicals on Route 50, Ocean Gateway, at Sea Hawk Drive around 12:50 a.m. Sunday. Video and photos are on the Berlin Fire Company Facebook.