🔵 Boy rescued from swimming pool at the Jersey Shore

🔵 Tragic drownings continue in NJ

🔵 Families can take steps to protect unsupervised kids from pools

BERKELEY — A four-year-old boy is hospitalized in critical but stable condition after a rescue in Ocean County this Labor Day weekend, according to authorities.

The young child was rescued from a swimming pool at a home in South Seaside Park on Friday, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office said.

Police said the boy was unresponsive when officers arrived around 3:30 p.m.

He was rushed to the hospital. Authorities said the boy was alive as of the latest update midday Saturday.

Tragic drownings continue in NJ

At least 11 other families have lost children in accidental drownings in New Jersey since Memorial Day.

A missing four-year-old child in Middlesex County was found dead in a pond behind a home in Monroe on Tuesday, authorities said.

Another four-year-old boy in Bergen County drowned in his family’s pool in July.

Children aren’t the only ones drowning in New Jersey. A man swimming with friends drowned in the Cedar Lake Wildlife Management on Thursday.

Read More: Multiple drownings this week, with the latest in South Jersey

Protect unsupervised kids from pools

Drowning is a leading cause of death among young children four and under.

Nationally, drownings of children 15 and younger increased 15% from 2020 to 2021, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. That’s the latest data available.

The CPSC recommends families should install multiple protective measures around pools including fences, alarms, pool covers, and self-latching features to keep unsupervised kids away from the water.

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Grieving hockey fans erected a memorial Saturday on the New Jersey corner where an alleged drunk driver claimed the lives of NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his younger brother Matthew.

A cross crafted from old hockey sticks bearing the names of the brothers and their respective player numbers was plunged into the ground alongside County Route 551 in Oldmans Township, where the duo had been cycling together Thursday evening.

Several other sticks were arranged on the grass peppered between dozens of flower bouquets, balloons and a sign promising that the brothers will be “forever in our hearts.”

Odes to the Gaudreaus’ respective hockey careers were also offered up at the memorial — including two bottles of Gatorade, which served as a nod to Johnny Gaudreau’s tradition of sharing a bottle of the sports drink with his old Calgary Flames teammates after scoring a goal.

One man who laid down flowers told The Post that the offerings were left by “the entire hockey community across the country.”

They even left behind flowers, hockey sticks and even jerseys front of the home of their surviving family members — who were meant to be celebrating a wedding rather than the loss of both brothers.

“What makes this so sad is that it could have been preventable. If he drank, why didn’t he just take an Uber?” one grieving visitor, who declined to share their name, said of the alleged drunk driver.

Johnny, 31, and Matthew, 29, were biking in their New Jersey hometown when they were struck and killed by a motorist who allegedly told a state trooper he guzzled “five to six” beers” before the crash.

The driver, Sean Higgins, reportedly attempted to pass an SUV in front of him, which had moved into the middle of the roadway to give the brothers plenty of room, just after 8 p.m.

Follow the NY Post’s coverage on NHL star Johnny Gaudreau’s tragic death at 31:

The US Army Major tried to pass the SUV on the right, striking the Gaudreaus from behind. The county road is rural, with crops on either side. There are no shoulders or street lights.

The tragedy struck one day before the Gaudreau brothers were set to take part as groomsmen in their sister Katie’s wedding to hockey player Devin Joyce in Gloucester City, NJ. The family had even celebrated the wedding rehearsal just hours before the tragedy.

Johnny, who played for the Columbus Blue Jackets, leaves behind a wife and two young daughters.

Matthew’s wife is pregnant and is expecting their first child in December.

Higgins — who appeared to sigh with exasperation in court upon learning he would be held in jail through next week — faces two counts of vehicular homicide.

New Jersey gaming workers were dealt a serious legal blow Friday when a state judge dismissed a lawsuit that sought to ban smoking on casino floors.

The ruling in favor of Atlantic City’s nine struggling casinos was delivered by Superior Court Judge Patrick Bartels.

The tobacco-wary casino workers filed a lawsuit in May, seeking a permanent ban on smoking over the health concerns posed by second-hand smoke.

When the state abolished smoking indoors nearly 20 years ago, they did so with an exception — permitting smoking on 25% of the casino floor.

The casino workers first called on state lawmakers to prohibit smoking four years ago, but when a bill to that effect stalled, they filed their lawsuit.

Opponents of the ban say it will lead to casino closures and thousands of layoffs.

They also believe putting an end to smoking in Atlantic City casinos will drive gamblers to casinos in neighboring Pennsylvania.

Casino owners also contend the state would lose millions in tax revenue under such a ban.

Atlantic City‘s nine casinos have been hurting financially since the start of the COVID pandemic, a recovery made even harder with the advent of online and app-based gambling.

The casino industry has long opposed a smoking ban, and said it has been working to develop better ventilation systems as well as enclosed smoking rooms, staffed by employees who volunteer to work there.