A Perspective On Rip Currents

Here are a few facts to highlight the force and power of a rip current.

Seawater weighs 64 pounds per cubic foot. A cubic yard of seawater weighs 1728 pounds. To put this into perspective, the original Volkswagen Beetle only weighed 1650 pounds! It’s easy to see that the impact of a wave can match that of a VW, or more.

Live Science explains that rip currents can pull up to a rate of 8 feet per second. That’s a speed of 5.5 mph. That’s faster than what an Olympic swimmer can swim. It’s actually faster than what most people can run!

So, think of an automobile hitting you, then pushing you at 5-6 miles an hour. Who do you think will win this competition?

Where people get into trouble is when they try to swim against the force, speed, and power of a traveling car. No human can do it.

It is important to understand that rip currents can occur under almost any weather conditions. The weather does not need to be bad for a rip current to be present.

The picture above is from Live Science. It is a wonderful display of what causes a rip current. What you are seeing in the photograph are the exposed components of what makes a rip current. All of what you are seeing would normally be unseen and underwater.

A rip current is formed when there is a break in a near shore berm. A berm is an underwater bank or mound of sand rising off the sea floor. This break acts as a funnel for some of the water. It also accelerates the water flow as it passes through the break. The water is delayed when exiting the berm due to the fact that it has to run parallel to the beach first before exiting through the break. What happens then is that while the tide is coming in, the exiting water through the break is going out. So, not only do you have to fight the force of an oncoming car, you must battle it going the opposite direction.

The United States Lifesaving Association offers the following tips if you get caught in a rip current.

1.If caught in a rip current, remain calm to conserve energy and think clearly.

2.Don’t fight the current. Swim out of the current in a direction following the shoreline. When out of the current, swim towards shore.

3.If you are unable to swim out of the rip current, float or calmly tread water. When out of the current, swim towards shore.

4.If you are still unable to reach shore, draw attention to yourself: face the shore, wave your arms, and yell for help.

The intent of this article was to offer some insights and perspectives of what a rip current is and especially the force and power that they potentially can have. Please contact local authorities for information on rip currents in your area.

Bill Hitchcock