While September is usually warm enough to enjoy the beach, only a handful of beaches on Long Beach Island will have lifeguards following Labor Day weekend, with the decline in guarded beaches actually starting before the holiday.

With members of the lifeguard staff returning to school or their full-time jobs, the guarded beaches in Barnegat Light are planned to be at 22nd Street and 25th Street the week leading up to and including Labor Day weekend, said Dottie Reynolds, council chair of the…