With surf patrols now in recess but water temperatures still attractive, people attending our beaches need to be able to identify rip currents which are the number one coastal hazard in Australia.
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Rips contribute to an average of 26 deaths each year, while millions of Australian children and adults have been unintentionally caught in a rip.
"In the last five years we've seen evidence that more Australians are becoming aware of the rip current hazard ... but research has repeatedly shown people are not good at identifying them," Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA) lead researcher Jasmin Lawes said.
While SLSA has produced many resources to assist beach goers in identifying rips, the Australian children's music group, The Wiggles, have promoted a simple catch phrase which is of great note.
The Wiggles song, 'Henry (the octopus) Likes Water', features the lyrics "when the water's white, it's alright - when it's green, it's mean."
That means when the water's green, there could be a dangerous rip-tide.
When waves approach a beach, they will topple over, 'break', and produce a line of white foaming water. Even though this may look threatening, it is the safest place to avoid rips.
The foaming waves brings water onto the beach which will then return to the ocean. If the incoming waves are small, a continuous white line of foam may be seen running towards the shore along a whole beach. While ever there is a continuous white line, this indicates that no rips are present.
If waves are large, even in a small set, the amount of water returning to sea increases and gouges a channel in which the water usually appears calm with a green appearance. There are no breaking waves and no, or little, white foaming water in this area. This is a rip.
In general, It can be easy to look for where the waves are breaking consistently, and then look to each side where they don't break consistently. Those latter areas are rip currents.
During surf season, swim at a patrolled beach and between the red and yellow flags, but if caught in a rip at any time, here is what to do;
- Relax - stay calm and float to conserve your energy.
- Raise - raise your arm and attract attention.
- Swim parallel to the beach, towards the breaking waves where you can stand on the sand bar.
Often, it is not possible to swim directly back to shore against a rip current, so this is not recommended, as you will become tired quickly.
Contrary to popular misunderstanding, a rip does not pull a swimmer under the water, but it can pull a swimmer away from the beach.
