NWS Meteorologists along the Gulf Coast routinely provide daily rip current forecasts for local beaches via the “Surf Zone Forecast” (SRF) product:įlorida Panhandle Beaches Surf Zone Forecast from NWS TallahasseeĬoastal Alabama and Northwest Florida Beaches Surf Zone Forecast from NWS Mobile Rip currents do not pull you under the water - it will just pull you away from the beach. Learn all about rip currents in this video from the City of Orange Beach - Beach Safety Division and NWS Mobile!Ī rip current is NOT a “rip tide”. Learn all about rip currents in this video from the South Walton Fire District and NWS Tallahassee ![]() Rip currents also commonly form around breaks in sandbars and near inlets, jetties, and piers (where they are more intense). For that reason, rip currents are life-threatening to anyone entering the surf. ![]() Rip currents can travel as fast as 8 feet per second - that’s faster than an Olympic swimmer! A rip current is dangerous because it can sweep even the strongest swimmers out to sea. Think of a rip current like this - it is a natural treadmill traveling away from the beach. Rip currents can and do occur on clear, sunny days. Rip currents typically extend from near the shoreline out through the breaker zone where breaking waves form. That is more than the fatalities of flooding, tornadoes, lightning, and tropical storms/hurricanes COMBINED!! Ī powerful, narrow channel of water flowing away from the beach. There have been a staggering 195 rip current fatalities since 2002 in the beaches covered by the National Weather Service Offices in Tallahassee, FL and Mobile, AL. Rip currents are the #1 weather-related killer at the beaches along the northern Gulf Coast. ![]() BUT! Just because you are having fun at the beach does NOT mean you can forget about safety. We all love the beach - the sun, the sand, and the surf.
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