Ability of beach users to identify rip currents at Pensacola Beach, Florida

Caldwell, Nicole; Houser, Chris; Meyer-Arendt, Klaus J.

doi:10.1007/s11069-013-0673-3

Cited by 70 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Beach users' vulnerability to drowning in a rip current depends on a combination of nearshore hydrodynamic and bathymetric conditions, personal and group behaviors, and the beach safety and rip current knowledge of the individual (e.g., Houser et al, 2011aHouser et al, , b, 2016Brander et al, 2011;Caldwell et al, 2013). Morgan et al (2009) identified that lacking rip current knowledge was associated with rip current drownings, as was gender, age, alcohol consumption, and overconfidence in swimming ability.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Morgan et al (2009) identified that lacking rip current knowledge was associated with rip current drownings, as was gender, age, alcohol consumption, and overconfidence in swimming ability. Recent evidence suggests that while most beach users are aware of rip currents and the hazard they pose, they are not able to identify a rip current (Sherker et al, 2010;Caldwell et al, 2013;Brannstrom et al, 2014). More than 80 % of beach users surveyed in Florida and Texas failed to identify rip currents in photographs, usually by incorrectly identifying areas of breaking waves as the most hazardous swimming conditions (Brannstrom et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It was acknowledged at the NOAA workshop that while there have been several recent studies to describe the extent of rip current knowledge amongst beach users (or lack thereof) on specific beaches in the United States (Caldwell et al, 2013;Brannstrom et al, 2014, there is insufficient understanding about beach user knowledge of rip currents and their behavior at the beach at a national level. This study describes results of a national online survey focused on US-based beachgoers and their understanding of, and experience with, the Break the Grip of the Rip!…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Public perceptions of a rip current hazard education program: “Break the Grip of the Rip!”

Houser

Trimble

Brander

et al. 2017

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Rip currents pose a major global beach hazard; estimates of annual rip-current-related deaths in the United States alone range from 35 to 100 per year. Despite increased social research into beach-goer experience, little is known about levels of rip current knowledge within the general population. This study describes the results of an online survey to determine the extent of rip current knowledge across the United States, with the aim of improving and enhancing existing beach safety education material. Results suggest that the US-based "Break the Grip of the Rip!" ® campaign has been successful in educating the public about rip current safety directly or indirectly, with the majority of respondents able to provide an accurate description of how to escape a rip current. However, the success of the campaign is limited by discrepancies between personal observations at the beach and rip forecasts that are broadcasted for a large area and time. It was the infrequent beach user that identified the largest discrepancies between the forecast and their observations. Since infrequent beach users also do not seek out lifeguards or take the same precautions as frequent beach users, it is argued that they are also at greatest risk of being caught in a dangerous situation. Results of this study suggest a need for the national campaign to provide greater focus on locally specific and verified rip forecasts and signage in coordination with lifeguards, but not at the expense of the successful national awareness program.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Public perceptions of a rip current hazard education program: “Break the Grip of the Rip!”

Houser

Trimble

Brander

et al. 2017

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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“…While the signs show beach users how to ''break the grip of the rip,'' it is reasonable to expect that most beach users are not able to translate the sign into a realworld feature that they should avoid (Brannstrom et al 2015). Recent evidence suggests that the majority of beach users at Pensacola Beach, Florida (Caldwell et al 2013), and Galveston Island and Port Aransas, Texas (Brannstrom et al 2014), are unable to identify a rip current in photographs of the surf zone from above and eye-level, respectively. In both studies, beach users tended to identify the rip as being in the area of breaking waves, and that the adjacent area of flat water (i.e., the rip) was the safest spot to enter the water.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alongshore correspondence of beach users and rip channels at Pensacola Beach, Florida

2015

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The potential for rescues and drownings is dependent on the spatial and temporal correspondence of an active rip current with the distribution of vulnerable beach users. This short communication examines the alongshore correspondence among the (1) exit locations of the walkovers, (2) the spatial and temporal distribution of beachgoers, and (3) the position of semipermanent accretion rips at Pensacola Beach, Florida. Results suggest that the alongshore distribution of beach users on the beach and in the water corresponds to the location of beach access points, which during this period of time sit directly landward of the three rip channels visible in the camera frame during the busy summer season of 2010. Assuming that the majority of beach users are unable to identify a rip current and avoid the hazard, the selection of swimming locations based on convenience suggests that beach safety efforts need to focus on guiding beach users to relatively safe locations away from rip current activity.

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“…While numerous factors lead to rip current drowning (Brander, Bradstreet, Sherker, & MacMahan, 2011), recent studies have shown that despite long-standing education and safety intervention efforts , public knowledge about rip currents and how to identify them is poor (Brannstrom, Brown, Houser, Trimble, & Santos, 2015;Caldwell, Houser, & Neyer-Arendt, 2013;Shaw et al, 2014;Sherker, Williamson, Hatfield, Brander, & Hayen, 2010;Woodward, Beaumont, Russell, & MacLeod, 2015).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

YouTube Videos and the Rip Current Hazard: Swimming in a Sea of (Mis)information

Mackellar¹,

Brander²,

Shaw³

2015

IJARE

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Ability of beach users to identify rip currents at Pensacola Beach, Florida

Cited by 70 publications

References 12 publications

Public perceptions of a rip current hazard education program: “Break the Grip of the Rip!”

Public perceptions of a rip current hazard education program: “Break the Grip of the Rip!”

Alongshore correspondence of beach users and rip channels at Pensacola Beach, Florida

YouTube Videos and the Rip Current Hazard: Swimming in a Sea of (Mis)information

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