Jacksonville Beach, Fla. — Lifeguards are prepping for large crowds at the beach this holiday weekend. They’re doubling their staff and anticipating some rough waves.
While their eyes are always on the ocean, they’re also asking you to do your part to stay safe.
We explain how you can prevent danger in the water as soon as you step foot onto the sand.
Tasha Jones was in Jacksonville Beach with her friend’s daughters, 2-year-old Kiko and 5-year-old Journey.
“The girls love it,” she said. “Yeah!” Journey replied.
More beachgoers also means more people in the water.
“He loves to swim,” said Anna Allenpennington about her 4-year-old son.
If you’re not a strong swimmer, lifeguards say: don’t go beyond knee-deep water, because you can easily get knocked down by a wave if you do venture into deeper water, and a backwash current could suck you into the ocean.
“[We] just stay in the shore, just where the water right here. We don’t wanna go near the waves,” Allenpennington explained.
Lifeguards also say you should keep kids an arm’s length away.
“I am a very nervous person, so I just keep the girls close to me,” Jones said. “I can swim. This one, she put on her own lifejacket, so she’s very safe,” she added, pointing to 2-year-old Kiko.
Communication is also key.
“[The girls] just know to listen,” Jones said.
5-year-old Journey understands why.
“When you get in the water, you know, how important is it to listen to the adults?” I asked.
“Very important,” Journey replied.
“And why is that?” I added. “
“‘Cause it keeps you safe from drowning in the water.”
Also keeping people safe are 46 lifeguards and officers. That’s more than twice as many than on Saturday, when there were 18 lifeguards and officers on duty.
A main concern is rip currents. If you get caught in one, lifeguards say you should remain calm. They won’t pull you under, only out. And you can use that energy to swim diagonally to shore. But you can find out what to expect before getting in the water.
As soon as you walk onto the beach, you’ll be able to spot a colored flag along the shoreline. The one in Jacksonville Beach is yellow, and that indicates there’s going to be some moderate surf and some strong rip currents in the water.
Lifeguards expect yellow flag conditions to continue into Monday.
Last weekend, Jacksonville Ocean Rescue says lifeguards pulled 44 people from the water and responded to 97 calls for service.
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