Pier Safety
Hidden dangers exist around shoreline structures

Powerful currents often flow around piers, jetties and other shoreline structures, making them particularly dangerous to swim near or around. The structures create currents by interrupting the flow of water along shore.

But there are other hazards as well. These structures were designed to help ships navigate safely, and their characteristics make them dangerous to the public, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Surfaces can become wet and slippery, and the edges are sharp.

Safety tips:
• Closely supervise children.
• Life jackets should be worn when on a pier.
• Do not dive off or swim around pier structures.
• Stay off piers during high winds or when waves are washing over.
• Avoid walking on wet, slippery areas.
• Stay away from the edge.
• Do not run or climb on pier structures.

Never jump or dive from a pier. The stones used to support the steel and concrete—some weighing up to 40 tons—extend beyond the pier just below the surface of the water.
Swimmers risk hitting the rocks, getting thrown against them by strong waves or becoming wedged between them below the water’s surface.

Even walking on a pier during adverse weather conditions can be fatal. In one incident in the fall of 2003, strong waves washed over the Grand Haven pier, sweeping a person into Lake Michigan.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers urges people to use common sense and caution near breakwaters, jetties and piers and to monitor weather and wave conditions.

For more information contact:
Lynn Duerod
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(313) 226-4680
lynn.m.duerod@lre02.usace.army.mil