Lake Erie beach hazard statement ends

CLEVELAND (WJW) — The National Weather Service warned swimmers away from Lake Erie on Sunday, due to the high risk of rip currents. That warning has since been canceled.

The National Weather Service of Cleveland issued two Beach Hazard Statements Sunday for two areas in Northeast Ohio.

An alert for Ashtabula and Lake counties in Ohio and Northern Erie County in Pennsylvania went into effect at 2 p.m. and expired late Sunday night.

A second alert for Cuyahoga , Erie and Lorain counties went into effect at 6 p.m. on Sunday and expired at 8 a.m. Monday.

“Wind and wave action will cause currents on the lakeshore. Swimmers should not enter the water. Currents can carry swimmers away from shore through a sand bar and along structures extending out into the lake,” the notice said.

An 11-year-old boy drowned in June off the shore of Conneaut Township Park after being swept away by rip currents, FOX 8 News previously reported .

How can someone escape a rip current?

The most frequent advice from beach rescue teams and weather forecasters is to not panic and look for a chance to swim parallel to the shore until the swimmer is out of the rip current’s grip, The Associated Press reported in June . It will eventually dissipate but might leave the swimmer out in deeper water.

It’s nearly impossible to fight the current directly. Many swimmers who get in trouble tire themselves out trying to get back to the beach, lifeguards say. If possible, it’s best to swim near a lifeguard station.

Flags with different colors are used to warn beachgoers of various hazards.

Three flags warn of surf and rip current conditions. Red means a high hazard, yellow means a moderate threat and green means low danger. There’s also purple for dangerous sea life, like jellyfish, and double red when a beach is closed for any reason.

The National Weather Service posts rip current risks on its websites around the coasts and has developed a computer model that can predict when conditions are favorable for their formation up to six days in advance for the U.S. East and Gulf Coasts, Puerto Rico, Hawaii and Guam.

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