Florida lifeguard talks ocean safety amid beach vacations
JACKSON, Tenn. — Many West Tennesseans will be visiting the beach while vacationing for the summer. Some, for the first time.
Being water competent in the ocean requires stronger and different skills than in a pool.
Whenever you are at the beach, ocean or other open water environment, there are some things you should watch and prepare for.
We spoke with a professional lifeguard and paramedic in Florida, Joshua Greinstein, president of Marine First Responders and Treasure Coast Junior Lifeguards.
Courtesy: Joshua Greinstein
Greinstein shared safety tips and risks to look out for while enjoying a day at the beach.
“Some of the obvious ones that everyone hears about is the rip currents. They’ll usually give it a surf advisory and a flag system by the USLA,” Greinstein said. “There’s a ‘low hazard’ which is a green flag day. There’s a ‘medium hazard’ which is a yellow flag when there’s, you know, moderate surf and you start to see some rip currents there. And then we have a red flag, which is a ‘high hazard day.’ And those are usually, the waves are large, there’s big shore break, and there’s some dangerous rip currents out there.”
According to the American Red Cross, the top things you should know while visiting an ocean or beach this summer include:
- Always swim in a lifeguarded area.
- Never swim alone, regardless of your age or level of swimming skills.
- Keep within your fitness and swimming capabilities.
- Be aware of weather and water conditions and heed warnings.
Greinstein also says to be aware of marine life that may be near your swimming area.
Click here for more ocean safety tips.
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