| Return to Marine News View Rip Current Brochure Acrobat Reader needed to view brochure. Click below to download free:
|
For
Immediate Release: July 2, 2001 Florida
Sea Grant: Andrew Diller, Marine Extension Agent, Escambia County, 850.475.5230 (Pensacola, FL) – After a deadly June along local beaches,
Florida Sea Grant and NOAA's National Weather Service remind beachgoers of
important tips to survive rips currents and surf conditions.
"The key message is: Don't Panic," says
Andrew Diller, Florida Sea Grant marine extension agent in Escambia
County. "Rip currents are powerful enough to pull even experienced
swimmers away from the shore.
"If you are caught in a rip current, don’t try
to swim against the current. Instead, float calmly and let the rip current
carry you 50 to 100 yards from the shore until it dissipates. Then swim
parallel to shore until you are out of the current. Finally swim back to shore at an angle away from the rip
current," Diller says. Rip currents
are formed when water rushes out to sea in a narrow path. They may form in
a break in a near shore sandbar, or if the current is diverted by a groin
or jetty. Many rip currents are temporary, while others are permanent.
Most trouble spots are less than 30 feet wide. Often they occur after
storms.
Since 1989, an average of 19
persons have died each year as a result of rip currents in Florida,
according to the National Weather Service East Central Florida Rip Current
Program. Rip currents, on average, result in more deaths in Florida
than hurricanes, tropical storms, tornadoes, severe thunderstorms and
lightning combined. Escambia County led the state in
rip-current-related deaths last year with five. Unfortunately, this
year’s total will exceed that. Last
month, 4 people died and many more required rescue by lifeguards due to
rip currents created by Tropical Storm Allison.
"With
the increasing number of people visiting our beaches, many do not
understand the danger of rip currents, or they attempt to swim where there
are no lifeguards, " according to Diller. "Our goal is to
educate beachgoers. Swimmers need to pay attention to the surf condition
warning flags: Red for danger, yellow for caution and green for calm
conditions.” Florida Sea Grant is currently funding research at
the University of Florida to develop a database of rip currents that can
be used to develop and test a predictive model of rip currents, in hopes
of reducing the loss of human life. (See http://www.napa.ufl.edu/2000news/rips.htm
for details of the research.)
Sea Grant
also publishes a brochure on rip currents that is available without charge
at the Escambia County Extension Office (850.475.5230) or by calling
Florida Sea Grant at 352.392.2801. There is also a 7-minute rip current
video produced by the national Sea Grant office, available for $6 each by
calling the North Carolina Sea Grant office at (919) 515. 9101. Important tips to
survive rip currents and heavy surf conditions: *
Do not overestimate your swimming abilities. If the surf is up, and you
are not experienced with large waves, stay out of the water. If you are
not an experienced swimmer and cannot keep yourself afloat for extended
periods, do not enter the water when the surf is running. *
Learn to recognize dangerous ocean conditions and rip currents. As waves
pile up onto the beach, the water forms rip currents as it heads back out
to sea. You can usually identify these currents as rivers of white water
flowing away from the beach. These currents are powerful and will pull
even the strongest swimmers out to sea. *
Stay calm, do not panic. Your chances of surviving a rip current or any
swimming experience are drastically improved by staying calm and
maintaining your ability to assess the situation. *
Never fight the rip. If you find yourself being pulled out to sea, do not
fight the current by trying to swim back to shore. Stay calm and go with
the flow. Keep yourself afloat by treading water or swimming parallel to
the beach. In a few minutes, the current will dissipate. *
Duck under the waves. Breaking waves pack a pretty good punch when they
hit a floating object. The secret is to duck under the waves. By
submerging yourself only 2-3 feet under the water, you will avoid almost
all of a wave's impact and safely pop back up on the other side. You will
only have to hold your breath a few seconds and this simple maneuver -
routinely used by surfers and experienced swimmers - can save your life. *
The other side of the Impact Zone. Waves on any given beach usually break
in an area known as the Impact Zone. This is not a friendly place for
swimmers or someone caught in a rip current. Just on the other side of the
zone, however, conditions are generally calm, the rip current fades, and a
swimmer can easily float over the waves while keeping his or her head
above water. *
Catch your breath, then try and call for help. After you have gone with
the flow and have allowed the rip current to take you out past the Impact
Zone, you can catch your breath and signal for help. It may seem like you
are very far from the beach, but you are generally safe here as long as
you can tread water and keep yourself afloat. At this point, you can swim
parallel to the beach to a calmer area to wait for help to arrive. *
Let the waves do the work. If no help is available and you need to get
back to the beach on your own, swim with the waves back toward the beach.
Take your time and remember to duck under the larger waves. Again, go with
the flow, and soon, the waves will push you back toward the beach. Andrew
Diller Phone:
850-475-5230
|
