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Rescue workers busy pulling folks from surf

Alicia Leonard avatar
SoWal Insider
6,621 views
50 people. Looks like the roads are not the only dangerous place to be this weekend.:eek:

Sunday?s surf is likely to pose some challenges for beachgoers and rescue workers started out the day warning folks about dangerous conditions.
By 9 a.m., the Destin Fire Department had already pulled four men out of the surf, including one that was transported for evaluation to Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast, according to acting Battalion Chief Bronson Coleman.
?This happened before beach patrol got on duty,? Coleman said of the first four rescues. ?Our guys are down there (now) warning everybody to get out of the water.?
Coleman said red flags would be flying and there were rip currents. Waves would be about two to three feet in Destin, he guessed.
The South Walton Fire District pulled more than 50 people out of the surf on Saturday. None were seriously injured.

http://www.nwfdailynews.com/article/14708

One missing off Panama City Beach

Nearly 50 pulled from Bay County waters; Okaloosa incidents less severe

PANAMA CITY BEACH ? One person was missing and at least 45 others had to be rescued from the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday in another dangerous weekend for swimmers here.

In Okaloosa County, firefighters and medical personnel reported several calls for distressed swimmers, but no one drowned and there were no serious injuries.

Bay County Sheriff?s Office Sgt. Tony Walker and deputies combed the beach with bullhorns Saturday afternoon to urge people to get out of the water. When they didn?t, the deputies, Panama City Beach officers, emergency medical technicians, firefighters and others dove in after the distressed swimmers. Rescuers pulled them out six at a time in some instances.

The missing swimmer had been in the water near the Carousel at the west end of Panama City Beach. The person was still missing at 8:30 p.m. when rescuers called off the search for the night.

Two people have drowned so far this month off Panama City Beach.

In Destin, firefighters responded to at least five distress calls Saturday. Many of the calls seemed to be precautionary, one firefighter said.

Yellow flags flew over Destin beaches early Saturday, but were replaced by red flags later. Red flags also flew over the beach on Okaloosa Island during the afternoon.

An Okaloosa County Emergency Medical Services worker also said there were several calls, but no one suffered severe injuries.

The day in Panama City Beach began with yellow flags. They were changed to red at 2 p.m. and then to double red at about 4 p.m. A red flag means there is strong surf and currents, while double red flags mean the water is closed to the public. Officials tried to change the flags to double red earlier in the day but kept having to leave to rescue troubled swimmers, Walker said.

Strong rip currents that sucked swimmers out to sea were blamed for the trouble.

?You cannot see it from the top,? Walker said. ?From the top side, the wave action makes it look very small.?

But the currents were strong enough to pull people in who were wading in waist-deep water, he added. It was unclear how many of the swimmers were seriously injured.

Emergency medical workers were ?transporting them left and right to the hospital,? Walker said. ?We do not know their conditions at this point.?

Mike Hudson, a lifeguard and local representative of the United States Lifesaving Association, said the day?s tragedies highlighted the need for lifeguards on Panama City Beach. Swimmers may not know what the flags mean and do not have anyone to ask, Hudson said.

?There isn?t anybody readily available to tell people, where is it safe to swim or is it safe to swim,? Hudson said.

Lifeguards would have worked to keep people out of the water and been closer to the scene if someone got in trouble, Hudson said. Prevention rather than reaction is needed, he added.

?That?s all we have in this county, really, is a reactive service,? Hudson said.

Panama City Beach police Maj. David Humphreys agreed that more qualified people on the beach would be a help. However, he estimated the cost at millions of dollars each year, money that local governments don?t have.

?We certainly don?t have it,? he said.
http://www.nwfdailynews.com/article/14698

Replies

38
CPort avatar
Beach Fanatic
#27
Last night's ch 7 (PCB) news reported over 100 rescues in PCB, yesterday, with 40+ in South Walton. I saw the aftermath of one or two yesterday in Seaside and Seagrove within 10 minutes of each other. Double red flags were hoisted and a sheriff deputy and lifeguard walked past one guy standing waist-deep in the water (dbl reds flying), and they didn't even look twice at the guy. Talked to a guy later who said that Darwin would take care of anyone who wanted to go out there.

Just heard on the PCB news tonight that one of the missing guys from PCB was found this morning, dead in the water. He was last seen going in after another swimmer who was in trouble.

One fellow SoWal.comER performed a successful rescue yesterday at Grayton. Good Job!
THis person was from HOlly Springs,Ms it was just reported on our news at 10pm
Smiling JOe avatar
SoWal Expert
#28
There was no excuse to be in the water at Grayton. Let your kids play in the lake for goodness sake!

The Lake inlet was crystal clear yesterday, and the depths vary from shallow to very shallow, making it better than a man-made water park. -- absolutely gorgeous!

The rip currents, tied with many people's inability to make good judgments of whether or not they should go into the water, made for a stressful and hectic four-day holiday weekend for SoWal Lifeguards and rescue crews.

I was a little surprised to see a TDC commercial on the Beach Flag System the other day. I've seen them before, but this was the first time I heard the adult telling the kids, that only strong swimmers should go into the water when Red Flags are flying. If a strong swimmer doesn't understand rip currents, they too, can drown. I know what they are trying to say, but I think the message may be miscommunicated.

SWFD Lifeguard Director, Gary Wise is indeed a busy-sounding man. I think we all need to pay close attention to what he and his lifeguard crews are saying. This man has performed many, many rescues right here in South Walton. We are extremely lucky to have him heading this team of people who are attempting to help educate our beach-goers on safety and sometimes, even saving their lives. Gary is interested in helping to educate this community, and getting some community support and feedback on how to improve on the current system. Thanks again, Gary and to all of your crew!


(edited -- thanks for the correction BeachSiO2)
BeachSiO2 avatar
Beach Fanatic
#29
The Lake inlet was crystal clear yesterday, and the depths vary from shallow to very shallow, making it better than a man-made water park. -- absolutely gorgeous!

The rip currents, tied with many people's inability to make good judgments of whether or not they should go into the water, made for a stressful and hectic four-day holiday weekend for SoWal Lifeguards and rescue crews.

I was a little surprised to see a TDC commercial on the Beach Flag System the other day. I've seen them before, but this was the first time I heard the adult telling the kids, that only strong swimmers should go into the water when Red Flags are flying. If a strong swimmer doesn't understand rip currents, they too, can drown. I know what they are trying to say, but I think the message may be miscommunicated.

SWFD Lifeguard Director, Gary Wise is indeed a busy-sounding man. I think we all need to pay close attention to what he and his lifeguard crews are saying. This man has performed many, many rescues right here in South Walton. We are extremely lucky to have him heading this team of people who are attempting to help educate our beach-goers on safety and sometimes, even saving their lives. Gary is interested in helping to educate this community, and getting some community support and feedback on how to improve on the current system. Thanks again, Gary and to all of your crew!

For those new members who might not know anything about Gary (and I know very little, but the little I've heard says so much), I'll share the first story I read about Gary Wise. Back around 2005, there was a girl who was bitten by a shark in Miramar Beach. As I recall the story, Gary, who I don't think was a SoWal Lifeguard at the time, was at the beach and saw the girl in trouble. He grabbed his surfboard and paddled out to the girl who was surrounded in a cloud of her own blood from the bite. He pulled her onto his board and paddled back to shore. (I seem to remember hearing that he had to punch the shark a few times, as he was trying to retrieve the girl.) I think the girl later died from too much blood loss. Regardless, I've asked myself many times if I had the courage to do something like that, and while I like to hope I do, there is still a big "?," as to how I might react. I doubt Gary thought twice about it. That is just what he does.

Gary is a great guy and a tremendous asset to Sowal. He and the SWFD have created an incredible lifeguard program that is making a positive impact.

That being said, he wasn't the guy at Miramar during the shark attack. It was Tim Dicus who was surfing at the time. http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/06/26/shark.attack/
scooterbug44 avatar
SoWal Expert
#30
Last night I was telling the folks about the drowning and how many people they had to rescue. Mom's response: "Do they not have the flag system anymore?" :roll:

Kudos to the lifeguards and Gary for protecting all these idiots from Darwinism.

Nice that he wants to get the locals involved, but based on my experience, nothing will keep the idiots out of the water except a visible fin or jellies! :bang:
jodiFL avatar
Beach Fanatic
#31
Gary is a great guy and a tremendous asset to Sowal. He and the SWFD have created an incredible lifeguard program that is making a positive impact.

That being said, he wasn't the guy at Miramar during the shark attack. It was Tim Dicus who was surfing at the time. http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/06/26/shark.attack/

I was just going to post that being Tim. When I worked at the Whales Tail he and his board were well known in the area and it surprised no one that he went out to get the girl.
Smiling JOe avatar
SoWal Expert
#32
Gary is a great guy and a tremendous asset to Sowal. He and the SWFD have created an incredible lifeguard program that is making a positive impact.

That being said, he wasn't the guy at Miramar during the shark attack. It was Tim Dicus who was surfing at the time. http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/06/26/shark.attack/
Well, my apologies to Tim Discus (and thanks for the correction), but Gary is forever locked into my brain as that guy. Now, Gary has a lot to live up to in order to keep up with his celebrity status in my mind. :funn:
Smiling JOe avatar
SoWal Expert
#33
Nice that he wants to get the locals involved, but based on my experience, nothing will keep the idiots out of the water except a visible fin or jellies! :bang:
Great idea! Maybe we could have volunteer swimmers to wear a simulated shark dorsal fin attached to their backs, and have them swim back and forth around the second sand bar.
jodiFL avatar
Beach Fanatic
#34
Well, my apologies to Tim Discus (and thanks for the correction), but Gary is forever locked into my brain as that guy. Now, Gary has a lot to live up to in order to keep up with his celebrity status in my mind. :funn:
He also needs to start getting alot more sun to be able to have that "tanned leather" appearance that Tim has.:floor:
micki avatar
Beach Lover
#35
The thing that shocks me about most people is the "look at the water" method. This just takes stupidity to a new level. If this worked we wouldn't have seasoned proffesionals changing flags.

Unfortunately it's going to take a very sad event for most people to take note of the flag system and beach safety.

Personally I will continue to beat it into my friends and loved ones heads, as for the others I can only sit back and watch. I only say this as I've tried to explain the flags in the past and most people look at you like your wearing a sandwich board with the world is flat on it.

I can totally relate. At Hilton Head Island a few years ago, we had a 16-person family reunion at the southern end of the island near the inlet. On the beach where we stayed were signs clearly posting "NO Swimming. Dangerous Current". And, you could even see where the rip currents were cutting into the beach. Family members were going out in the water and I cautioned them not to do so - even explaining the situation regarding currents in and around inlets. But, they just looked at me like I was being ridiculous and continued to go in the water - even taking their 4 and 5 year olds in with them. I looked like the dumb one for getting in the car and driving north 5 miles to the public beach. Luckily, we didn't lose anyone.
BeachSiO2 avatar
Beach Fanatic
#36
Well, my apologies to Tim Discus (and thanks for the correction), but Gary is forever locked into my brain as that guy. Now, Gary has a lot to live up to in order to keep up with his celebrity status in my mind. :funn:

He is from Australia so it may be a true story with only a location and timing change ;-)
beachyteachy avatar
Beach Fanatic
#37
Funny! Someone actually mentioned that at Grayton yesterday. Might not be a bad idea! :lolabove:

Great idea! Maybe we could have volunteer swimmers to wear a simulated shark dorsal fin attached to their backs, and have them swim back and forth around the second sand bar.
ShallowsNole avatar
Beach Fanatic
#38
Y'all would not believe some of the responses we get at the office from folks who have been issued a swimming on double red flag citation.

Our favorite was the gentleman who wrote that his 17-year-old son and son's friend had been cooped up in the car for 15 hours and while Mom & Dad were unpacking, they went to do what they came to "Destin" for in the first place. (The date of the stay indicated that Katrina was churning out in the gulf at the time.) We must not appreciate our visitors, as not more that five minutes on the beach, they were "harrassed" and given a " :cuss: ridiculous" citation. Next year, they will look for a more family-friendly beach, as "Destin" will not get another red dime of their family's money."

We wanted to write back "So your kid is still alive?" but we are required to simply smile and scan it in. :bang:
Matt J avatar
SWGB
#39
Y'all would not believe some of the responses we get at the office from folks who have been issued a swimming on double red flag citation.

Our favorite was the gentleman who wrote that his 17-year-old son and son's friend had been cooped up in the car for 15 hours and while Mom & Dad were unpacking, they went to do what they came to "Destin" for in the first place. (The date of the stay indicated that Katrina was churning out in the gulf at the time.) We must not appreciate our visitors, as not more that five minutes on the beach, they were "harrassed" and given a " :cuss: ridiculous" citation. Next year, they will look for a more family-friendly beach, as "Destin" will not get another red dime of their family's money."

We wanted to write back "So your kid is still alive?" but we are required to simply smile and scan it in. :bang:

They should try any other beach with a life guard. I feel that they should get a letter back thanking them for the money and to feel free to find another vacation spot where they can be as flamingly stupid as they wish.

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