Rip Current Forecasts Begin
Communities along Lake Michigan and Lake Superior will have advance warning this summer if weather conditions create an increased risk of rip currents.
The National Weather Service will issue rip current forecasts for Lake Michigan and parts of Lake Superior as part of the service’s Hazardous Weather Outlook broadcast on weather radio.
“Essentially the forecast gives people a heads up…” says Dave Guenther of the National Weather Service in Marquette. “A lot will depend on local communities to take the action needed to warn swimmers.” Some beaches have a flag system in place, with a red flag signaling unsafe waters.
According to Guenther, the conditions that create an increased risk of rip currents include onshore winds and waves averaging four feet or greater. These conditions allow water to build up near shore. The excess water eventually flows lakeward through a narrow channel or break in a sand bar, creating a powerful current that can easily tire a strong swimmer.
Rip currents have been associated with a number of drowning fatalities in the Great Lakes from 2000-2004.
If caught in a rip current:
- Stay calm.
- Don’t fight the current.
- Swim in a direction following the shoreline (parallel).
- Float or tread water. When the current weakens, swim at an angle (away from the current) toward shore.
- If you cannot reach shore, draw attention to yourself. Call or wave for help.
Source: Break the Grip of the Rip |
Contact:
Mark Breederland, (231) 922-4628
Ronald Kinnunen, (906) 226-3687
Chuck Pistis, (616) 846-8250
See: www.miseagrant.umich.edu/rip
Also See: NOAA has designated the week of June 5, 2005 as National Rip Current Awareness week. See: www.ripcurrents.noaa.gov
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