Drowning

[Richard B the EMT]

In the last week of June, on a class trip, a 12 year old girl from Harlem, New York County, went into the Atlantic Ocean off Long Beach/Atlantic Beach in Nassau County. Lifeguards were not available, as the season had not yet opened. She was dragged out by a rip current, and wasn't found for almost an hour. She died of drowning.

The next week, in the Riis Park area of Gateway National Recreation Area, in Queens County, a 14 year old boy from Brooklyn went into the water at Riis' Bay 4, an hour after the lifeguards went off duty. Despite rescue efforts for the next 2 hours, by regular and specialty trained personnel from the NYPD, the FDNY, FDNY EMS, Rockaway Point Volunteer Fire Department and EMS (4 wheel drive ambulances), the National Park Police, and the US Coast guard, he was not found. His body floated up 4 days later.

2 days ago (from day of posting), again, after the Lifeguards went off duty, a 22 year old man from the Bronx defied repeated warnings from a New York City Park Enforcement Officer (an unarmed "Peace Officer"), and went into the ocean off of Beach 116th Street, in the Rockaway Park area of Queens County, and got pulled under by high surf and rip currents. He was found roughly 20 minutes after being dragged under, moved to street-side by a Parks Department 4 wheel drive pickup truck, and with CPR continuing, transferred to an FDNY EMS ALS unit. He was pronounced on arrival at the nearest ER. His fiancee, and another friend of the deceased, were transported to the hospital, with the fiancee visibly in emotional distress.

As per the Park Enforcement Officer's statement, the trio had been chased out of the water by her, at least 3 times, before she found the 2 screaming for help when the third had gone missing.

Lifeguards in this area, when seasonally on duty, are only available from 10 AM to 6 PM. We're fighting to have their hours of coverage extended. The water closes at 6, when the Lifeguards go home, the beach itself closes at 10 PM, and the boardwalk, where we have one, closes at midnight.

Lady J, my better half, wants to launch a campaign that all New York City TV and radio stations should announce, repeatedly during the summer season, that nobody should go into the water when there is no lifeguard on duty. If it is done at all, Public Service announcements like that are put on late at night, when the people who the message is for won't be awake to hear them. Neither of us has any ideas on how to pay for such public service announcements.

What do you think of this? Nobody seems to know or understand that an unoccupied Lifeguard chair with a red flag on it means no swimming, except us locals by the beaches. I'm open to suggestions.

[FireMedic65]

Public education. Strict enforcement/consequences. Better parenting! You can't cure stupid Richard.. you can only try your best to stay one step ahead of the idiots.

[Lone Star]

The sad reality of the matter is this:

Coastal cities have issued 'swimmer safety warnings and rules' for years and years.

Unfortunately, a good portion of today's society (and I'm not bagging on any group because of age or any other 'qualifier') that seems to think that "...the rules don't apply to ME!"

Until we can find a way to overcome that syndrome, and the accompanying thought process of “It’ll never happen to ME!” we’re fighting a losing battle.

Sometimes we just have to shake our head and realize:

[Happiness]

For one thing as someone who lives by the ocean actually about 500 from the ocean, is all my boys went to swimming lessons from the time they were babies. Next your communities need to post the rip tide area's. We have a few here posted and not posted, but when im on the beach and see people near the rip places not posted I tell them. Fire is right you cant fix stupid and people will always go where they shouldnt, and maybe they should extend the lifeguard time later than 6 pm to darkness after that really who should be swimming.

[Richard B the EMT]

It seems to me the general consensus is, nothing is idiot proof, as they keep improving the idiots.