-
Trouble logging in? Send us a message with your username and/or email address for help.
-
Hello all! We will be performing a website & forum update soon. You may get logged out so now is the time to make sure your email address in your account is correct - go to your account to check it and update it now. Send us a message with your username and/or email address if you need help.
***Swimmers being rescued***
- Thread starter Matt J
- Start date
Grayton Girl
Beach Fanatic
What a tragedy!
Oh my! This is horrible news. I was at Grayton a couple of hours ago, and I was stunned to see 5 or 6 people in the water, pretty far out, playing in the waves. They were standing on a sandbar that had been created way offshore by the outflow of Western Lake, but one false move and they would have been carried off the sandbar and into the deep and very rough water.
I saw all of this from the porch of my dad's house, but now I feel like I should have gone down to the beach and spoken with these people. If I see this happening again, I will speak my mind. The vacationers can just laugh at me if they want to, or tell me to mind my own business, but I will at least have a clear conscience.
The Gulf is extremely rough and dangerous right now. The only people who should be in the water are surfers who are attached to their boards with leashes.
Oh my! This is horrible news. I was at Grayton a couple of hours ago, and I was stunned to see 5 or 6 people in the water, pretty far out, playing in the waves. They were standing on a sandbar that had been created way offshore by the outflow of Western Lake, but one false move and they would have been carried off the sandbar and into the deep and very rough water.
I saw all of this from the porch of my dad's house, but now I feel like I should have gone down to the beach and spoken with these people. If I see this happening again, I will speak my mind. The vacationers can just laugh at me if they want to, or tell me to mind my own business, but I will at least have a clear conscience.
The Gulf is extremely rough and dangerous right now. The only people who should be in the water are surfers who are attached to their boards with leashes.
scooterbug44
SoWal Expert
Very sad way to start or end a vactation!
I wish people would obey the damn flags instead of putting their lives and their rescuers lives at risk!
I wish people would obey the damn flags instead of putting their lives and their rescuers lives at risk!
Pirate
Beach Fanatic
I was actually there and I have to be honest, the rescue was one swimmer, a lifeguard, who made a herculean effort at rescuing these folks and was by himself in the water. I am not sure of the circumstances that the 3 arrived where they did but it looked like 2 of them had boogie boards. I was stunned to see no one from the FD or Sherriffs office with a paddle board or any type of water rescue equipment deployed. It was at least 30 minutes for a PWC to arrive and it came after the rescue was over. I am so sorry for the family and my thoughts are with them. Double red flag actually means don't go in the water and it is still single red. Pretty easy to say obey the flags, hard to see a man die under any circumstances.
Last edited:
SHELLY
SoWal Insider
With such a beautiful day (finally), I tried to spend a relaxing day on the beach, but couldn't relax because stupid parents were letting their little kids play in the surf and I felt it was my duty to do the watching for them. You can't relax while you're in the "life saving" mode. Had to pack up and leave.
So sad to hear that someone died today.
.
So sad to hear that someone died today.
.
Lake Eastern
Beach Lover
Amen! As a teenager I worked in Myrtle Beach, SC and I was shocked at the numbers of drownings and recues we did. Having grown up on Walton's Gulf of Mexico beaches where it seemed rare to have a drowning. It actually seemed more happened to the fishermen and boaters in the Bay. I just assumed it was b/c it was the Atlantic Ocean. I guess it is just the masses of people who now come here to vacation. Such a tragedy!
Matt J
SWGB
Single Red means the following:
RED: HIGH HAZARD - High Surf and/or Strong Currents
That is from SWFD - HOME. Personally it reads to me that the water is closed to those that do not have an incredibly good swimming ability or those with flotation devices i.e. surf boards.
Yes, it's sad that someone was so intent on going in that they basically made the decision to end their life for a dip in the gulf. Not the brightest move IMO and a real great example for kids, "Hey we paid to come on vacation and mother nature didn't cooperate. Oh well we paid we'll go".
scooterbug44
SoWal Expert
Single red doesn't mean it's safe to swim - it means "stop, don't go in the water." That's why it's the same color as a "stop" sign, traffic "stoplight"etc.
Lifeguards on the beach are a recent occurrence, and it sounds like they are doing a great job. Hopefully the program will continue to expand. Often sending others into the water who are not suited for it just increases the tragedy potential, so I can understand why Fire or Sheriff's Dept. would not go in.
I constantly say "obey the flags" because I'm a former lifeguard who had water safety beaten into me by responsible parents. I am a much stronger swimmer than the majority of the tourists and I would not go into the water on a red flag day. We have many pools and coastal lakes for people who just must go into some water on red flag days.
Noone ever wants anybody to drown or be in harm's way - it's a horrible thing, that's why it is very frustrating to constantly see people ignoring the warnings and dangers.
