July 11, 2013 Tabytha
Beu
“Deadly Rip Currents Ravish the East Coast”
The rip currents of the summer of 2013 have become out of
control. Stretching along the east coast
from Florida all the way up to Maine the deadly rip currents have been
treacherous for surfers and swimmers alike.
There are over 100 deaths and tens of thousands of rescues from the rip
currents annually.
A rip current is simply a fast moving collision of two or
more waves. The current causes the water
to become extremely murky and difficult to escape. Most swimmers caught in the current try to
escape by swimming straight towards shore.
To most this seems the most logical way to avoid drowning, but to experts
it is not the case.
Lifeguards and water safety experts say to swim towards
shore at an angle due to there being multiple waves involved in the creation of
the current. Most who try to swim
straight towards shore end of drowning or have to be rescued due to exhaustion
and fatigue.
I myself got to witness the rip currents yesterday, July 10th,
while I was visiting Kure Beach, NC.
When articles describe the water as being murky, that does not even
begin to describe it. The waves that I
witnessed were closer to the color of ink.
The waves were ferocious and the tide was very high. It is no wonder that so many deaths per year
are attributed to deadly rip currents.
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