by Chris Munzing
Chief of Lifeguards John Skudin said it is the mission of every member of his staff to keep tragedy from striking Long Beach.
"When in doubt, don't go out," he said. "We, as professionals, respect the ocean every day, and you should too."
"It can be pretty exciting, but we don't want to have to rescue people," said nine-year veteran Danny Colucci, 24. "We practice preventative life-guarding. We try and stop problems before they happen."
Both Skudin and Colucci said that the most important thing beachgoers can do is be aware of what is going on around them. Dangerous rip currents, rough seas, and crashing waves can turn a fun day at the beach into a nightmare.
"It can happen in an instant, and it doesn't take much," Skudin said.
Rip currents
Rip currents are the leading ocean hazard for swimmers, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). These currents, often referred to as rip tides, form when waves break strongly in some locations and weakly in others, forming narrow, quick-moving belts of water traveling away from the shore.
More than 100 drownings due to rip currents occur every year in the United States, according to the NWS, and more than 80 percent of water rescues are due to rip currents.
Skudin said that the Long Beach lifeguards are trained to recognize rip currents and how to handle them.
Rip currents most typically form at low spots or breaks in sandbars, the NWS said, and also near structures such as groins, jetties and piers. Rip currents can be very narrow or hundreds of yards wide.
"If you find yourself in a rip current, try not to panic," Skudin said. "Don't fight a rip current, because it's going to win. Swim parallel to the beach until you leave the current, then make your way back to shore."
How to Identify Rip Currents
- A channel of churning, choppy water
- An area having a notable difference in water color
- A line of foam, seaweed, or debris moving steadily seaward
- A break in the incoming wave pattern
How to Avoid and Survive
Rip Currents
- Learn how to swim.
- Never swim alone.
- Be cautious at all times, especially when swimming at unguarded beaches. If in doubt, don't go out.
- Whenever possible, swim at a lifeguard protected beach.
- Obey all instructions and orders from lifeguards.
- If caught in a rip current, remain calm to conserve energy and think clearly.
- Don't fight the current. Swim out of the current in a direction following the shoreline. When out of the current, swim towards shore.
- If you are unable to swim out of the rip current, float or calmly tread water. When out of the current, swim towards shore.
- If you are still unable to reach shore, draw attention to yourself: face the shore, wave your arms, and yell for help.
- If you see someone in trouble, get help from a lifeguard. If a lifeguard is not available, have someone call 911. Throw the rip current victim something that floats and yell instructions on how to escape. Remember, many people drown while trying to save someone else from a rip current.
Watch your kids
"We're not baby-sitters, and swimmers need to remember that this is the ocean," Colucci said. "It's not a lake or a pool. The water moves."
Colucci said that when bringing kids down to the beach, keep an eye on them at all times. "Sometimes people bring the kids down, and then the parents lie down and don't pay attention," he said. "We encourage parents to go down to the water with their kids."
"A small child can easily get knocked over by a wave," Skudin said. "With kids, it usually doesn't take much to overwhelm them. The parents should always be close to shore."
Colucci suggested that if a parent is unsure of what a safe area is for their child to bathe, he or she should ask a lifeguard. "We talk to the people about keeping safe," he said. "If people are setting up there stuff where the water is choppy, we'll say, 'why don't you set your stuff up over here.' We want everyone to be safe."
Know your limits
Though the summer has yet to officially start, there have already been multiple drownings nearby in the ocean off the Rockaways and Coney Island, due to dangerous currents and inexperienced swimmers.
"A lot of people aren't familiar with the water, and in some ways don't respect it enough," Skudin said. "If you're not sure of your swimming ability, why would you take that chance?"
Colucci said that most of problems lifeguards encounter are the result of beachgoers from out of town who are unfamiliar with the ocean. "The out of towners think we're just busting their chops when we tell them to move or something," he said. "But the people from here listen. The local people respect the ocean, and the local kids know the rules and know how to swim."
Don't swim after hours
In the summer of 2003, two Long Beach Police Officers were forced to rescue three teenagers caught up in a rip current after the beach park had officially closed. The dramatic July 4 rescue could have turned into a tragedy if not for the quick-thinking officers.
Unfortunately, more after-hours rescues have had to be made since then, Skudin said. In response, four or five lifeguards will be stationed at the lifeguard shack on National Boulevard from 6 to 8 p.m. The lifeguards will be there to answer any emergency calls from the police. Skudin said the lifeguards will not be patrolling the beach, and will not officially be on-duty. "We're only going to be there as back-up," he said. "If the police receive a 911 call about an emergency on the beach or in the water, they'll call us and we will respond instead of them."
Skudin said that the handful of lifeguards at the station after-hours would not be paid overtime, but would start their shifts two hours later than normal.
Comments about this story? DMiller@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 213.
