Beach Safety


One of the safety signs at Laguna Beach, Orange County, California
Sometime during the spring break, I visited California, and of course, I visited one of the beautiful beaches in the area, Laguna Beach to be precise. It was my first time on a beach in the US and I couldn’t help but notice the various safety signs and notifications around the beach. It was like I was in the CIA and taking mental notes of what was around me. I also noticed that lifeguards would come by in their vehicles at intervals to warn about the tide, especially when the sun began to go down and whenever they saw that you were going too far into the water.

My best friend, whom I was visiting, told me to write about beach safety but I wasn’t sure what to write. I knew that there were a lot of safety concerns about the beach but I was just really blank. Sadly, I got news today that two ladies drowned at a beach back home in Nigeria and I felt terrible. The news pushed me to finally write an article on beach safety. I pray for peace for their beautiful souls.
                                     
                                        Image result for rip current
When talking about large bodies of water, common terms used are ‘tide’ and ‘current’. Tides are influenced by the gravitational pull of the moon or the sun (tides are higher with the moon because the moon is closer to the earth than the sun). This gravitational pull causes the characteristic up and down movement of the tide. The movement of the tides leads to horizontal movements known as currents, and the higher the tide, the greater the current.

The most common cause of death on the beach is the rip current. In the US, there are at least 100 drownings due to rip currents. They are high speed currents that pull people away from the shore into the sea and are very dangerous, especially to people who cannot swim, or weaker people, like kids. Most times, people die from exhaustion from fighting the currents and eventually drown.


                                                  Image result for rip current                    

So, some general safety tips that I pulled off the United Sates Lifesaving Association website are:
  • Learn how to swim, but if you cannot, don’t go too close to the water
  • If caught in a rip current, stay calm and try to swim horizontal to the shore (This one is hard because I know I would be freaking out if I was in that situation. But if you can, please do)
  • Don’t fight the current and try to stay afloat
  • If you see someone in distress, call for trained help

On a personal note, I choose to hold the beach managers responsible this time and as customers of these businesses, we could start by forcing them to have trained lifeguards on standby by not patronizing the ones that do not or by not patronizing the ones that do not have safety signs at least! These safety signs are on the internet and free to use if there are no restrictions. And if you are visiting a private beach, it is necessary to know some safety tips that could be of help. Stay safe.

#SaveLivesAtTheBeach #RIPSola&Funmi



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