Floating buoys at Bar Beach were destroyed in recent storms, prompting concerns about safety among swimmers.
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Bar Beach regular Libby Maskey said the row of 10 white buoys had been at the northern end of the beach for decades.
They were linked by a rope attached to anchored poles and situated among rocks, where people swim.
Mrs Maskey said the buoys should be replaced for safety reasons.
She had swum at Bar Beach for decades.
"I've been swimming on that beach for 60-plus years and the buoys have been there longer," she said.
"It's my backyard. In summer, I go there every day."
She had seen the buoys save the lives of many swimmers.
"Old and young people swim in that area," she said.
A City of Newcastle spokesperson confirmed that the buoys and rope, along with the anchored poles, were damaged in recent large swells.
"City of Newcastle is investigating options to reinstate the damaged anchor and buoys," the spokesperson said.
Hunter Surf Lifesaving chief executive Rhonda Scruton backed plans to replace the buoys.
"People who get into trouble can swim to those buoys, so they have something to hold onto. They are definitely lifesavers," Ms Scruton said, as the surf lifesaving season began at the weekend.
The northern section of Bar Beach, among the rocks, is known as "the bar".
"The bar is that section of the beach where a concrete slab protrudes out into the water. It's been there for many years - all my life," Mrs Maskey said.
Lifesavers don't patrol that area, but Mrs Maskey said the buoys made it safe.
"The buoys have saved so many lives. So many times a rip comes through there, but you know you're safe because you have that protection from being swept away."
Without the buoys, she feared people would get "swept down the beach and be at risk of drowning".
"I've seen many people hanging onto the buoys.
"I don't want to be on the beach when somebody gets washed away and it becomes an 'I told you so' situation.
"Without the buoys, it's a tragedy waiting to happen."
Last year, she said a "chain of about four of us" rescued two young teenage girls.
Little kids swim in a wading area around rock pools on the northern side of the bar.
"When they're confident, they progress to the southern side of the bar. That's where the buoys are."
Last year, a storm broke one of the buoy's poles.
In the more recent storm, both poles and the buoys washed away.
