That little beep of a metal detector can often mean nothing but trash, but every once and a while, it can lead to fame, fortune, and even “happy tears.”

Laura Emanuel from southern New Jersey was on the beach enjoying the sun over Cape May when, after taking off her wedding band and another ring to put sunscreen on, she promptly forgot about them.

Debating what to do, she called 23-year veteran of the Cape May Fire Department Jeffery Laag, who runs “ Ring Finders Cape May ” a hobby-helper service that allows him to spend mornings metal detecting on the beach looking for lost valuables.

After Laag’s first sweep of the beach with his trusty metal detector, he had to call Emanuel with some unhappy news: he had found nothing.

Just a few days after she lost her rings, wild weather struck

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