| A
new public awareness campaign launched today by NOAA and the
U.S. Lifesaving Association puts the spotlight on deadly rip
currents, helping beachgoers recognize them and offering potentially
life-saving tips on how to get out of them.
At a news conference in Wrightsville, N.C., officials from
NOAA, the U.S.
Lifesaving Association (USLA), public officials and rip
current researchers joined a family that had been devastated
by a rip current-related death to call attention to this important
national issue. According to the USLA, 80 percent of surf
beach rescues are attributed to rip currents, and more than
100 people die annually from drowning when they are unable
to escape a rip current.
"Rip currents are the leading safety hazard
for beachgoers! On average, more people die every year by
rip currents than to shark attacks or weather-related deaths,
such as tornadoes, lightning, hurricanes or flooding," said
retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad
C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D., undersecretary of commerce for
oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator.
"Teach your kids beach safety and how to
act if they are in trouble in the water," said Sandee LaMotte
whose husband, a reporter for the Cable News Network (CNN),
died trying to save their son from a rip current last year.
Although her son was rescued, another good Samaritan lost
his life in an attempt to save LaMotte's husband. "Eight families
lost loved ones to rip currents on that day and it did not
need to happen."
To help lifeguards identify potential rip
current hazards, the NOAA
National Weather Service (NWS) began issuing Surf Zone
Forecasts from many local NWS offices last summer.
"The Surf Zone Forecast's Rip Current Outlook
is communicated by many local NOAA National Weather Service
offices to lifeguard agencies, beach patrols, emergency management
officials, the media and the public," said retired Air Force
Brig. Gen. David L. Johnson, director of the NWS. "Each Weather
Forecast Office directly transmits the Surf Zone Forecast
to the public through NOAA Weather Radio and local Web sites.
Our standardized forecast ensures that consistent rip current
information is available to beach goers along the Atlantic,
Gulf and Pacific coasts."
"Rip currents are dangerous because they
are invisible to the untrained eye and can happen without
warning. They are particularly dangerous for weak and non-swimmers,"
said Chris Brewster, USLA president.
"More than 20 years of research has shown
us that under certain wave, tide and beach conditions, rip
currents can quickly become dangerous to anyone entering the
surf," said Wendy Carey, a Delaware
Sea Grant rip current researcher. "Average rip current
speeds of 1-2 feet per second can sweep even the strongest
swimmer out to sea. Rip currents have been measured as fast
as 8 feet per second, which is faster than an Olympic swimmer
can sprint."
NOAA and the USLA have developed a series
of communications tools to help educate beachgoers about the
threat of rip currents including outdoor signs for posting
by municipalities along boardwalks and beachfronts and a "Break
the Grip of the Rip" safety brochure.
Another valuable resource in this national
awareness campaign is the new NOAA rip currents Web site found
at http://www.ripcurrents.noaa.gov/.
Elements of the new Web site include details on rip current
science, safety tips, survivor stories, downloadable photos
and graphics, public service announcements in English and
Spanish and links to rip current research/statistics.
All of the communications tools call attention
to how to identify rip currents, what to do when you see warning
signs, how to avoid becoming a victim, what to do if you get
caught in a rip current and how to help others who are caught.
NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security
and national safety through the prediction and research of
weather and climate-related events and providing environmental
stewardship of the nation's coastal and marine resources.
NOAA is part of the U.S.
Department of Commerce.
For more information, please see: NOAA
Rip Currents
National Weather
Service
North
Carolina Sea Grant
Michigan
Sea Grant
USLA
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FOR MORE INFORMATION: Ben Sherman, 202/662-7095, E-Mail:
sherman@nasw.org
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