Jim McCloy, who has studied beaches for over 30 years, is an expert on how to have a safe seaside vacation. Uneven terrain with hidden deep pools and strong rip currents, strong, seaward-flowing water, can be lethal to even the most experienced swimmers, and even a calm, quiet beach area can prove dangerous, he said.
Alcohol use adds to lifeguards' headaches and increases naturally occurring dangers.
He cited statistics from one study showing 50 percent of all drowning victims over the age of 13 that had their blood analyzed had alcohol in their blood. Increased numbers of nonswimmers using beaches also make the lifeguards' job difficult. On many coasts, breaking waves create bar and trough topography, rolling hills and valleys on the seabed near shore. Swimmers see others standing up out in the surf and, not realizing the people they're watching are standing on sand bars, start walking seaward and step into unexpected depressions where water may be over their heads, McCloy said. The rip currents erode the sand at the base of the groins, forming 8 to 12 foot deep scour holes, which present additional drowning hazards, McCloy said.