Beach Safety is No Accident
Sand, sun, surf, summertime and … safety. Five big “S” words mark Memorial Day to Labor Day on the beaches of the Jersey Shore.
Safety tips resemble an epic manuscript, authored by the United States Lifesaving Association, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, local guards and beach-patrol chiefs, along with your own instincts. The contents continually expand, but the book will never be too long.
This dispatch can be part of your own personal handbook. Feel free to add to it.
From the USLA:
Learn to swim
Swim near a lifeguard
Swim with a buddy
Check with the lifeguards
Use sunscreen and drink water
Obey posted signs and flags
Keep the beach and water clean
Enter the water feet first
Wear a life jacket
Learn rip-current safety
The USLA notes that death by drowning is only the tip of the iceberg for aquatic injury. It has been found that for every 10 children who die by drowning, 140 are treated in emergency rooms and 36 are admitted for further hospital treatment. Some never fully recover.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that roughly 10 people drown per day in the United States but that trained lifeguards also save thousands of lives every year. Toddlers are most susceptible to danger, along with anyone who chooses to head into the water alone during rough conditions.
Following some guidelines dramatically enhances one’s chances to remain safe. Local officials are on top of it. Beach-patrol captains Murray Wolf in Avalon, Sandy Bosacco in Stone Harbor, Renny Steele in Sea Isle City and Bill Handley in Upper Township compile their own extensive precaution list, along with rationale. This is a sample of their observations:
Always listen to lifeguard whistles and swim directly in front of the lifeguard stand. Guards are aware of ocean hazards such as rip currents, inshore holes and lateral currents. This enables them to keep bathers away from these hazards.
Never dig parallel to the sand’s surface (a tunnel). Eventually the tunnel will collapse and suffocate anyone inside it. The sides of a hole dug in sand can also collapse. Dig holes only to waist deep. If more than one person is in the hole, the depth should be waist deep of the shortest person in the hole.
Follow the 30/30 rule during an electric storm. Leave the beach and seek safe shelter when fewer than 30 seconds pass between the sight of lightning and the sound of thunder (flash-to-bang count). Do not return to the beach until 30 minutes have passed after your last flash-to-bang count. Whenever the lifeguards vacate the stand and leave the beach due to lightning, you should also leave the beach.
If caught in a rip current, remain calm to conserve energy and think clearly. Do not fight the current by trying to swim directly to shore. Swim parallel to the shoreline until you are no longer in the rip. When out of the current, swim toward the shore. The first move, not panicking, is most important here. So is knowing what that move would be before ever being caught in the rip current.
Familiarize yourself with the flags on beaches where the system is used. They often resemble the legend of traffic lights. Green usually means calm water, yellow indicates moderate conditions and red signifies high surf and strong currents. A red flag might also indicate the beach is closed for swimming. A combination of red and yellow often indicates that someone has been lost and a search is underway. Not all beaches use the flags, however. Avalon, for instance, does not; the beach patrol prefers people to listen to the lifeguards to obtain updated information.
Check with your resident beach patrol on this, and also gain a general idea of how deep in the water they are comfortable for you to be. Generally, chest deep on a decent day is the standard. Know the whistle signals. Short bursts often denote the need for a rescue. Long whistle sounds are for instruction.
Do not dive toward the bottom into oncoming waves. Hold your hands out in front of your head and dive through the wave. Another safe method of negotiating the waves is to squat down and allow the wave to roll over top of you. Always be aware of the wave action. Do not stand in the water with your back to the waves.
Don’t swim before or after hours. That usually means before 10am and after 5pm, perhaps a little later on some days. Lifeguards can pull you out of the water and connect you for further medical help, if necessary. It makes sense to utilize them. This directive is even given to the guards by their beach-patrol captains. If it’s good enough for the people who have an athletic background and would be most tempted to swim alone after hours, it’s good for everyone else.
Do not play around or climb on rock jetties or groins. Fish hooks and broken glass often collect around groins and jetties. The jetties are also uneven in places and a bad step could result in an ankle being trapped in a crack between rocks, or knees and backs being affected. The jetties can be slippery, too.
Remain properly hydrated whenever on the beach. This safety tip is of heightened importance if you consumed alcohol or coffee within the previous 12 hours.
Remember to retain enough energy to swim back to shore. This can be especially significant for someone who spends a great deal of time in the water and drifts a little too far out.
And finally, if you are not sure about a rule or regulation, ask.
In consideration of others:
Fill in all holes that you might have dug during your beach stay. Unfilled holes can cause injury to another person. They might not be seen at dusk, for instance, by a cleanup crew, or can be accidentally stepped into by a child or senior citizen.
Umbrellas. They are great for sun-shielding, comfort and skin protection. In the case of high winds, however, they become dangerous if uprooted. Be sure they are placed securely in the sand. Conversely, if one is near you, be aware of its potential to become loose if high winds develop.
Inquire about beaches that allow rafts, paddle boards and surfing, along with volleyball and Frisbees.
Even when the guideline is a rule, not a tip, it is rooted in safety. Ball-playing is not allowed on most beaches, although the rule is enforced less stringently when beaches are sparsely populated. Yet, people playing catch with hardballs in a densely populated area were spotted on a beach outside of the local area last summer. This can cause a major accident with an errant throw and discomfort for anyone positioned behind someone trying to catch the ball.
These observations are just a sample of the pointers that can be the ounce of prevention one needs to savor the best of the beach. You will, no doubt, add your own perspective and go fully equipped to the sand and water. Enjoy a fun, safe season.
