How to Stay Safe in the Surf

I'll never forget the day. I was eleven years old, sitting with my mom and siblings on the sand at Smith Point County Park, a barrier beach in Long Island, when there was a tremendous ruckus. It seemed that every lifeguard on the beach was converging on a point in front of me. Who could that endangered person be? Oh, my God, they were pulling my father out of the water!

The surf is no respecter of persons. My father, big, buff, an expert swimmer, required three lifeguards to drag him from the maws of death. Meanwhile, I, a scrawny eleven year old and a weak swimmer had evaded the same deadly current unaided just minutes before.

Surf safety does not lie in strength or expert swimming. The finest swimmer on earth cannot defeat the force of the ocean-instead, the key to survival rests in a canny appraisal of surf conditions, a cool head, and the ability to remain afloat at all costs.

Every year several people die in the waters of Rockaway Beach in Queens, while comparatively fewer lives are lost in the far more dangerous waters of Robert Moses, Smith Point County Park or Jones Beach. The difference? Knowledge. Long Islanders have typically grown up around water, while Rockaway Beach is full of inexperienced city folk.

Swimmers should arm themselves with information before they step in the water. A website such as http://www.surfline.com/surf-report can provide up-to-date reports on water temperatures, prevailing wind direction, wave height, water cleanliness and other pertinent facts. It is also a good idea to consult http://www.weather.com/ to make sure no lightening storms are expected in your area. Finally, before stepping into the water, ask the lifeguard to point out any areas where riptides are forming. You may want to move to another section of beach.

Riptides are powerful oceanward moving currents that can quickly drag an unwary swimmer out to sea. I have heard inexperienced swimmers say that they only go ankle deep in the water, so they are safe. Don't fool yourself. The worst riptides have the ability to kick the feet right out from under you and drag you into water before anyone can react. Last year, children wading in ankle-deep surf in Reynolds channel, Rockaway died in just that way. If warning signs are out, don't go into the water at all!

These killing currents form when fast-moving water bounces off a jetty, sandbar or shore. They are especially dangerous when a strong wind blows onshore. Rip currents can be differentiated by water that is much lighter than the surrounding sea. The air or sand driven up by such a current creates a yellow or white appearance, and swimming in such water is like swimming in the agitator cycle of a washing machine.

There are two methods for escaping a riptide:

1. Let the water take you out, preserve your strength and then swim back quickly with it when it reverses and heads back towards shore. This method takes courage, but very little skill, and it was the way I escaped my riptide encounter at Smith Point Park on the same day when my father nearly died.
2. The preferred way to escape a riptide is to swim parallel to the beach until you exit the narrow channel of oceanward moving water. Once you are free of the current, you can face the beach and swim back normally.

Under no circumstances are you to attempt to fight the water. You will quickly tire yourself out and die.

What should you do if you are tired or fear you may drown? Do you breathe through your nose or through your fingertips? Frantically waving one's arms overhead is a surefire way to drive your head under the surf. Signaling the lifeguard isn't really the issue. Staying alive, and above the water is your only priority. To accomplish this, keep your hands down.

The Red Cross's drown-proofing course teaches participants to float vertically with hands outstretched in the water and head tilted back, elevating the nose and mouth for better breathing. This position requires the least energy and gives the greatest chance of survival.

A second method is simply to turn on your back and float with your arms and legs outstretched. Once you have recovered your strength you can head to shore or you may be helped into a boat by a lifeguard.

Avoiding injury at the beach really isn't that hard. If you arm yourself with knowledge, preparation and a cool head you will enjoy safe swimming in the surf for years to come.