JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – Within two weeks, 11 people have died in rip currents along the Gulf Coast, according to preliminary reports from the National Weather Service.
Bay County Sheriff Tommy Ford titled a recent Facebook post: The aftermath of a deadly weekend.
The pictures in the post show a trench dredged in the sand under the water from rip currents. Reports say 11 people died in rip currents along the Gulf Coast within two weeks.
Al Sandrik with the National Weather Service of Jacksonville said there is no difference in the waters of Bay County and our beaches.
“Bay County is particularly susceptible to rip currents, but we have beaches here in Northeast Florida that have the same issues,” said Sandrik, the Warning Coordinator Meteorologist.
Rip currents can be very powerful. Before you get in the water this holiday weekend, the NWS Jacksonville has some important reminders for you.
“There are different signatures associated with the rip current,” Sandrik said. “It may be just a smoother area of water, or waves are breaking on either side of it. But the key point is every single solitary day, there are always rip currents out there.”
He said it’s important to swim by beaches guarded by lifeguards. Also, swimmers can’t panic if they get caught in the rip current. There are some swimmers who say they just don’t risk it.
“When I’m in the water and I get a strong current that’s pulling me back, I know that I’m too close and it’s a rip current,” one said.
Another beachgoer told us she was actually caught in a rip current before.
“A little bit scary, but I got out. You’re supposed to swim parallel to the shore,” she said.
The water at Jacksonville Beach was calm on Wednesday, but NWS Jacksonville said there will be an elevated rip current risk at area beaches this week.