What Should You Do if Someone Is Struggling in the Water? How to Avoid Double Drowning While Helping Others

Last year, more than 90 people died in rip currents at beaches in the U.S. This summer in Florida, there were eight rip current deaths in one week. When seeing someone struggling, your instinct may be to jump in and help , but that could lead to an even bigger crisis called "double drowning." Inside Edition has some tips on how to avoid it .

Experts say you should not jump in yourself if you see someone drowning.

Some drowning tragedies are compounded by double drowning, which is when someone tries to save another person and then drowns in the process.

Jalan Alston was 18 years old when he lost his life trying to save his friends who had been swept away in a rip current off the Jersey Shore.

Alston jumped into the water despite not knowing how to swim.

"Makes me cry. Makes me sad, because as a mother, I miss him every day," Alston's mother tells Inside Edition.

The best thing to do when seeing someone drowning is to wait for professionals to respond, experts say. Lifeguards are aware that it may be against your natural instincts, especially when it's loved ones who are in danger, but they say you should fight the urge to help.

"When a child may be struggling or in trouble in the water and a parent has an impulse to run in, we could be creating a situation where the parent is also in jeopardy and now also a drowning victim," a lifeguard at Spring Lake in New Jersey says. "It becomes a very dangerous situation in which a tragedy can be compounded with more tragedy."

It is crucial to stay calm and make sure 911 is called before doing anything else, experts say.

"It's got to be a painfully hard thing for a parent to do, to stand by and watch as their child struggles in the ocean, but unless you are a professional rescuer with equipment and support, we would discourage you from entering," the lifeguard says.

Also, experts say to only swim at beaches with lifeguards present.

"If the beach doesn't have qualified professional lifeguards staffed, we would discourage them from entering the water. Period," the lifeguard said.

While it is not recommended, experts say if you do try to rescue someone, do not go in the water without a floatation device.

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