Rip Current Basics and Safety Information
Know Your Options!
Building a Weather-Ready Nation
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What is important to learn…
• What are rip currents?
• Why are they dangerous?
• What are clues that a rip current may
be present?
• How do I know if I am caught in rip?
• What can I do if I am caught in a rip?
• How do I help someone else?
• What are some other safety tips?
Photo: Galveston, TX Beach Patrol
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The most common beach hazard
• Rips are channelized currents of
water that flow back into the
ocean from the shoreline
• They typically form at breaks in
sandbars, and near structures
such as jetties & piers
• Rips are commonly found on
along all surf beaches, including
Photo: NOAA
Great Lakes beaches
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Facts about rip currents
• Rip current speeds average 1 to 2 ft per
second but they have been measured as fast
as 8 ft per second – faster than an Olympic
swimmer!
• They do not pull people under the water, they
pull people away from shore
• Rips are sometimes mistakenly called
undertow or rip tides, but these terms are not
correct
Photo: Galveston, TX Beach Patrol - Rip safety sign
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Three parts of a rip current
• Rip currents have three parts:
Feeders, Neck, and Head
Head • Speeds are strongest in the
Neck neck, and they weaken
beyond the breakers
Feeder
Feeder • The length and width of rip
currents can vary
dramatically
Photo: Marina Beach, California (Dr. Brander)
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How do rip currents form?
• Rips form as incoming Incoming Waves Incoming Waves
waves push water up
the slope of the beach
• To remain in balance,
excess water building in
the surf zone seeks the
path of least resistance
as a rip current through
the surf zone Photo: NOAA
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Structure caused rip currents
• Rip currents often form
beside structures
• These currents can be strong
• Stay clear of structures
Photo: Stevens Institute of Technology – New Jersey
Photo: Pleasure Pier, Galveston, TX
(Galveston TX Beach Patrol)
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Why are rip currents dangerous?
• Rip currents pull people away
from shore
• They are often hard to identify in
the surf and not everyone knows
about rip current dangers
• Sometimes the worst events
occur with the best weather
• People try to out-swim them
Photo: Chris Brewster - Blacks Beach, San Diego, CA Feb 9, 2012
versus swim out of them
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How to spot a rip current
• A narrow gap of darker,
seemingly calmer water
between areas of breaking
waves and whitewater
• A channel of churning,
choppy water
• A difference in water color
• A line of foam, seaweed or
debris moving seaward
Photo: NOAA – Big Sur, Monterey, CA
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Can you find the rip current? Exercise 1
A difference in water color
A difference in
water color
Photo: Carolina Beach, NC Police Department
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Can you find the rip current? Exercise 2
Area of seemingly calmer water no
breaking waves through the surf
Photo: NOAA
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Can you find the rip current? Exercise 3
Another example of a rip in an area that
looks calmer with no breaking waves
Photo: Chris Brewster – Pacific Beach, San Diego, CA
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Can you find the rip current? Exercise 4
Rip current in the darker area
(deeper water) between sandbars
Shallow water Shallow water
over the sandbar over the sandbar
Photo: NOAA
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How many rips in this picture? Exercise 5
Example of multiple rip currents highlighted by
a difference in water color as sediment is being
carried away from the shoreline by the rips
Photo: Michigan Sea Grant – Lake Michigan 14
Not all rip currents are created equal
Pacific Beach, San Diego, CA (Chris Brewster) Black’s Beach, San Diego, CA (Chris Brewster) Stanwell Park, Sydney, Australia (Dr. Brander)
Huntington Beach, CA (Chris Brewster) St Kilda Beach, Dunedin, South Island New Zealand Zuma Beach, Malibu, CA (Nick Steers)
(Dr. Brander) 15
How do I know if I am caught in a rip?
• It’s not always obvious if you are
caught in a rip
• As you are swimming toward
shore you are not making any
progress and becoming tired
• With stronger rips you may feel
that you are being pulled away
from the beach
Photo: Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue, NC
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What can I do if I am caught in a rip?
Image: USLA/Sea Grant/NOAA 17
How do I help someone else?
Know your options!
Don’t put yourself at risk
Get help from a lifeguard
If a lifeguard is not present, call 9-1-1, then try to
direct the victim to swim following the shoreline to
escape
If possible, throw the rip current victim something that
floats
Never enter the water without a flotation device
Photo: California Sea Grant
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What are some other safety tips?
• Know how to swim
• Swim near a lifeguard
• Never swim alone
• If in doubt, don’t go out!
Photo: USLA
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Thank you & have a safe trip to the beach!
National Weather Service
https://ripcurrents.noaa.gov
United States Lifesaving Association
https://www.usla.org/ripcurrents
Building a Weather-Ready Nation
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