How to avoid and survive dangerous rip currents at NYC's beaches

Beach season in New York City got off to an alarming start last month when two teenage boys drowned at Jacob Riis Park beach in Queens.

NYPD officials said they were swept away by a strong rip current shortly after lifeguards left their chairs for the day.

The tragic incident served as a reminder of how to respond if you find yourself struggling in the water off the city’s coasts.

Gothamist spoke with swimming experts and a veteran lifeguard on what New Yorkers should do to stay safe if they’re caught in choppy waters.

If there isn’t a lifeguard on duty, don’t swim.

At least 13 swimmers have drowned at Rockaway's beaches since 2019. All but one of those deaths occurred during hours when lifeguards are off duty, according to an analysis by Gothamist. They’re supposed to be stationed along the city’s beaches from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Lifeguards are trained to swim in dangerous waters, but they can’t help if they’re not working.

Check the parks department website for beach information before you go. Many areas of city beaches remain off-limits for swimming as the city struggles to bolster the ranks of its lifeguards.

Befriend your lifeguard.

Lifeguards don’t just sit idly in their high chairs, said John Hearin, an expert on coastal processes. He said it’s worth speaking to them about the conditions in the water before jumping in.

“If there are rip currents immediately adjacent to their tower, they should be able to see that and warn people,” he said.

Other experts agreed that New Yorkers should chat up their lifeguards.

“When I go to the beach, and I have many years as a lifeguard, the first thing I do is I look for my lifeguard,” said Shawn Slevin from the Swim Strong Foundation. “And I go to that lifeguard and I ask them, ‘Can you tell me what's going on in the water today?’”

If you’re caught in a rip current, don’t panic.

If you feel yourself being carried out to sea by a strong current, the safest thing to do is relax and avoid wasting your energy, said Janet Fash, a chief city lifeguard who has watched over Rockaway's beaches for decades.

“A rip current can be terrifying to a non-swimmer,” she said. “To a surfer, it's a joy to take a rip out to the waves. So depending on who you are, the rip current can be terrifying, but it does stop.”

Hearin agreed: “If you just allow yourself to be in the rip it will typically release you in one direction or the other,” he said.

Fash said currents sometimes naturally take swimmers back to shore. But if they don’t, she said you should wait until it subsides, and then calmly swim parallel to the beach until you find a calmer area of the water before swimming back.

Don’t be a hero.

Trying to rescue someone who’s struggling in the water can also land you in trouble. You should alert a lifeguard if you see someone caught in a current and leave any further assistance to professionals.

“Don't go in for a rescue,” said Fash. “You can throw something to them, but if you're not a lifeguard, don't be the hero because you're going to drown as well,” Fash said.

Oh, and stop calling them “rip tides.”

Rip tides are found inside of bays or inlets, while rip currents are found up and down beaches, said John Fletemeyer, chair of the International Drowning Prevention Alliance.

“Never confuse a rip current with a rip tide, because they're completely different animals,” he said.