Boogie Boarder rescued off Roads End Saturday afternoon
Roads End Rip Current
Archive photo
A wet-suited surfer on a boogie board got into some trouble off the south end of Roads End Saturday afternoon.
A caller to 9-1-1 said the man was the distance of about two football fields offshore and was struggling to get back into the beach – but couldn’t.
North Lincoln Fire Rescue pulled up about the time the surfer managed to catch a wave that took him back about half way to shore. Water rescuers from North Lincoln Fire went out and helped him get the rest of the way back in.
It turned out that the surfer was caught in….you guessed it…a nasty rip current and was fighting against it. Water rescuers remind everyone to be very alert about the condition of the water out from any beach. Rip currents near the shore can appear to be rather calm but that’s because waves are opposed by the outward bound rip current.
They say if you realize you’re heading out to sea a lot faster than you’re swimming, start figuring out where you’re headed. When you figure that out swim or paddle perpendicular to the current. You’ll still be headed seaward but eventually you’ll swim clear of the current and then you’ll be able to head back toward the beach. Perpendicular or a right angle to the current will do the trick. Just a steady, even stroke. Don’t wear yourself out because you’ll still have to swim all the way back to shore.
