Galveston is Booming
Summer, summer, summer… The water is now up in the 80s and crowds are above anyone’s expectations. Driving down the seawall on the afternoons makes you face the fact that Galveston is booming despite a pandemic. The beach is in full effect. The lifeguards are doing a great job and the new rookies are integrating into the Beach Patrol culture well, even to the point of becoming accustomed to the heavy workload that each guard carries.
That workload primarily consists of moving people out of areas where they could drown and is of the utmost importance. The most dangerous areas in Galveston are the rip currents along the groins, and at the ends of the island where there are intermittent powerful tidal currents. We are perhaps the lifeguard agency that focuses the most on prevention in the entire country. Part of this is because we are in the fortunate position to be able to identify areas where rip currents are likely, because along the upper Texas coast these are almost always next to some type of structure. Other beaches with a steeper grade have other types of rip currents that can pop up anywhere at a moment’s notice.
The key is to be able to identify areas that could be potentially dangerous and keep people out of them. This concept applies anywhere, not just on the beachfront. Once you get to the point to where a lifeguard or another person needs to attempt a rescue, you are already in a very tough spot. Water is not our natural habitat. So, every time someone makes a save, there is a tremendous amount of risk for both the rescuer and the victim. Without the specific training and tools that lifeguards possess, there is a very high chance that not only the victim, but the would-be rescuer will drown as well. Every year you hear about tragedies where someone went to save another person and a double or triple drowning fatality was the result.
So, what to do when you see someone actively drowning when there is no trained and equipped lifeguard around? First of all, DON’T ENTER THE WATER! Call 911 or summon trained help and then extend something or throw something that floats to them. That way, you’ll be safe, and the chance of additional victims is diminished. On the end of each of our rock jetties here in Galveston, we have a “rescue box” that contains a ring buoy attached to a rope in a “throw bag”. All you have to do is open the box and hold onto the rope while you throw the ring buoy to the person having trouble and then pull them up onto the rocks. We estimate 20 or 30 people are saved each year by bystanders without additional risk to the rescuers.
If you ever find yourself caught in a rip current, try to relax and float. No current pulls you under, just out. Call for help and either float or swim parallel to shore.
See you on the beach!
