Posted on 06/24/2024 12:18:08 PM PDT by DallasBiff
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Stinging jellyfish, rays with their whip-like tails and sharks on the hunt are some ocean hazards that might typically worry beachgoers. But rip currents are the greatest danger and account for the most beach rescues every year.
Six people drowned in rip currents over a recent two-day period in Florida, including a couple vacationing on Hutchinson Island from Pennsylvania with their six children and three young men on a Panhandle holiday from Alabama, officials say.
About 100 people drown from rip currents along U.S. beaches each year, according to the United States Lifesaving Association. And more than 80 percent of beach rescues annually involve rip currents.
(Excerpt) Read more at kbindependent.org ...
If I ever swim again it will be in a chlorine pool.
RIP to the victims of the rip currents.
Swim into the mouth of a bull shark and it will carry you to shore. I promise.
I love the beach. If I weren’t too old to run away from hurricanes, I’d live on the Outer Banks.
But I saw someone caught in a rip current once. It goes so fast, if you don’t have the presence of mind to handle it right (and even if you do, sometimes) it’s very scary.
Fortunately, she was saved.
I decided I wouldn’t attempt going into the water after a big storm again; and it’s a good idea to take some tennis balls to throw in, to see where they go.
“Stinging jellyfish, rays with their whip-like tails and sharks on the hunt”
Thsts only a partial list of salt water Hazzards and thst doesn’t even include the land bound ones......and then there’s the weather.....and hurricanes are only part of it.
Florida is the state lightning strike capital of the country.
Personally I don’t understand why people vacation in Florida.....much less move there......I know I sure as hell wouldn’t.
You forgot three. No natural shade, the sun reflecting off the light-colored sand, and the need to lavishly spread greasy sunscreen all over.
Don’t forget the prowling cougars.
Agreed. Whatever you do, avoid Florida!
I had to pull my kid sister’s friend out of a rip tide at Jax Beach when I was in high school. Even though you grow up knowing what to do it was somewhat scary. Fortunately she wasn’t very far out when I noticed it but still I ended up a hundred yards or more down the beach by the time I swam us out of it. The undertow is so strong you have to experience it to believe it.
No income taxes.
Very few states have a better pair of Senators.
“Personally I don’t understand why people vacation in Florida.....much less move there......I know I sure as hell wouldn’t.”
Why? We’re not cowards?
Swim straight down. Eventually you will pass out and wake up in a magical land. A dwarf will ask you two questions. If you guess them correctly he will transport you back to shore and you’ll be fine.
I live near the beach and would swim in the ocean all the time when I was young. I loved to body surf. However I would never go in unless I was in the zone of the life guards.
Yep, FL is a hell hole. Don’t visit. Call all friends and relatives and tell them to stay away.
When I lived in Southern California years ago, people always said, “Swim parallel to the shore” if caught in a rip tide.
I didn’t swim in the ocean, so I never tested the advice.
LOL!
I think two Florida residents who don’t have flags on their home pages have been identified...
“I never understood a beach vacation, been on a couple in my lifetime, sand in your shoes, saltwater, sharks, and rip currents.
If I ever swim again it will be in a chlorine pool.”
More space to swim, the sea air smells good and is good for your health unlike breathing bleach. The sea breeze cools the air 10 degrees or so on the hottest days which is amazing in the summer and you don’t even need to go in the water to feel it. Some people also really enjoy the ocean sound and surfing. On some beaches you can swim with tropical fish and other wildlife.
If you have idiots jumping in the pool near you, that is far more dangerous than sharks/currents.
Crystal clear lakes (aka natural pools) are the best for swimming IMO. Typically these are fed from springs and the water is constantly replaced.
I have been and many rip currents, yes swimming parallel to the shore for a while helps, but mostly you just tread water until it goes away, and then swim back to Shore you might be a ways out and that is why you should not be in the water unless you are physically fit.
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