Speaking of nightmares, it continues for some Jersey shore towns.

What started as a problem last weekend in Avalon, with medical waste washing up on the beach, leading to beach closings, has now turned up in neighboring Ocean City.

It’s hard to imagine a worse sight when it comes to the beach than used syringes, needles and medical waste.

The two instances aren’t believed to be related; that doesn’t make it any easier to swallow.

The timing is about as bad as Gustav’s.

Already a peak vacation week, even more people will jam the Jersey Shore for the traditional last hurrah of the summer season, otherwise known as the Labor Day weekend.

But right now a string of beaches are closed in Ocean City. The news did not improve this morning. A woman has reported finding still another syringe on the beach.

Whether the beaches will be reopened is unclear. Just as in Avalon, only a small percentage of beach is closed.

But the image is unmistakable. And ugly.

Hurricanes don’t usually show up in New Jersey. Unfortunately, medical waste does.

And right now it is threatening to ruin the Labor Day weekend for a lot of people.