Bay County officials strengthening safety measures after two deadly summers

BAY COUNTY, Fla. ( WMBB ) – After two deadly summers, public safety along Bay County’s beaches is at a crucial point.

Both city and county officials are poised to spend more money on lifeguards, while many say educating the public about rip currents is the best defense.

The first line in that defense is the beach warning flag system.

“You could come to the beach, set up on a perfectly good sandbar, have a really nice, safe place to swim. But if you’re not sure of what to look for or what to be aware of, you could find yourself in a situation,” Panama City Beach Safety Director Daryl Paul said.

Paul is a former lifeguard, paramedic, and firefighter, his job includes a big task every morning, determining the beach warning flags.

“It all depends on the conditions. There are a lot of variables that will give you that result. So that’s why we come down every morning that come down every morning and I check these and I try to spot them. That’s how I gauge my decision,” Paul said.

Wednesday he saw conditions that he felt warranted flying double red flags.

“The rip currents can be a little difficult to spot today. So, you know, you have to think about those people that aren’t familiar with rip currents that don’t know what to look for,” Paul said.

Paul said one of the most dangerous elements of rip currents is spotting them.

“It looks calm, it looks inviting, it looks like a good spot to put your kids because it’s calmer there. But that’s where the water is focusing and channeling. We call them feeders. So as this water feeds over and focuses into this channel, you can follow this feeder to find your rip current because there will be it’ll be feeding a rip somewhere so if you just walk along with it and you watch the sets and watch the water read the top of the water, you’ll be able to find it,” Paul added.

“So yeah, we track things from public contacts. That’s where a lifeguard makes contact with somebody and warns them about rip currents or teaches them about the beach warning flag system, public contacts, and beach attendance will count people here at a garden beach helping people visit this beach. We’ll count that throughout the day. Rescues, we count our rescues, public assist. That’s where the lifeguard enters the water proactively to prevent a rescue,” Paul explained.

Paul said that based on what other agencies have found effective, Panama City Beach would need to increase its lifeguard staffing.

“The industry standard that’s found among other agencies for lifeguard staffing that really works. It’s going to be a lifeguard every eighth of a mile for our beach in Panama City Beach within the city limits. That roughly be or out a lifeguard number around like in the eighties,” Paul concluded.

The Panama City Beach Council will hold a workshop on Thursday to discuss different ways to make the beaches safer, including the possibility of adding more lifeguards.

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