Millions of Americans flocking to beaches in the days before schools reopened were warned Sunday that swells from Tropical Storm Ernesto pose a grave danger to swimmers along much of the Atlantic coast.
The National Hurricane Center said Sunday that “life-threatening surf and current conditions” are likely for the next few days and that lifeguards advise beachgoers to stay out of the water. National Weather Service offices Maine want FloridaWarning of dangerous rip currents.
Ernesto, centered nearly 700 miles from Halifax, Canada, had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph and was expected to strengthen and regain hurricane strength on Sunday. The storm was moving north-northeast at 9 mph. Ernesto is forecast to gain some speed and turn east-northeast in the coming days.
Ernesto has been blamed for at least three deaths after two people drowned on South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island on Friday and a swimmer was found unresponsive in the waters off Surf City, North Carolina on Saturday. Dangerous surf and rip currents are possible in the Bahamas, Bermuda and Atlantic Canada over the next few days, the hurricane center said.
‘Don’t become a statistic’:Hurricane Ernesto brings rip current danger to millions of people
Developments:
∎ The New York City Parks and Recreation Department banned swimming at Queens and Brooklyn beaches on Sunday.
∎ In New Jersey, emergency management officials discouraged beachgoers from entering the water when lifeguards were not on duty: “Keep your feet in the sand until the lifeguards stop!” Dozens of rescues have been reported in recent days.
A third death has been reported due to rip currents
A third death was caused by rip currents created by Ernesto along the Atlantic coast, the National Weather Service said.
Two rescue swimmers from the Surf City Fire Department in North Carolina responded to a swimmer’s call at 2:46 p.m. Saturday, the city said in a news release. Rescue swimmers found Sean Davis, 41, of Hampstead, North Carolina, unresponsive in the water. Lifesaving measures were taken on the beach, but Davis did not survive, the city said.
Elsewhere on the North Carolina coast Saturday, 23 rip current rescues were reported at Wrightsville Beach, five at Carolina Beach and one at Gure Beach, the weather service said.
− Tina Voyles Bulwer
The rotande house collapses on the outer bank
In the North Carolina Outer Banks town of Rodante, Chicamacomico Banks Fire & Rescue released photos of the mangled remains of a waterfront home washed into the Atlantic Ocean. The agency said in a string that many houses are at risk of collapse from Ernesto. Social media posts. The agency warned that debris in the water increases the risk to swimmers.
“High rip current risk in rotande, waves and salvo today and tomorrow,” the agency warned. “Entering the sea is not advised.”
How a Rip Current Works
Rip currents are short, strong currents that move quickly away from shore. Normally, they move between 1 and 2 feet per second, but they can move faster than any Olympic swimmer at 8 feet per second, or 5.5 mph. They are usually no more than 80 feet wide.
Normally, when waves hit the beach, the water flows back into the sea in a uniform fashion. But low-lying areas on the sea floor, near breakwaters or sandbars, can disrupt uniform water circulation. Thus, water flows faster through an area A powerful tearing current outwards. If you’re caught in the current, relax. Rip current pulls you out, not under. Float or tread water until you escape or are rescued.
Bermuda was largely spared the worst of Ernesto
Officials in Bermuda were counting their blessings after Ernesto caused less damage than expected before heading north.
Forecasts indicated that Ernesto could reach the British Isles as a Category 3 hurricane with damaging winds of at least 111 mph after two days of wandering in the warm west-Atlantic. But the storm weakened slightly, becoming a Category 1 hurricane with winds of 89 mph Saturday morning.
Ernesto still left three-quarters of Bermuda without power as it uprooted trees and flooded streets, but no major injuries or damage were reported. Most of the archipelago’s 64,000 residents appear to have followed government orders to stay indoors during the storm’s height.
“There have been no calls for service for any major incidents or any property damage, and the calls we’ve received in the last six hours have been primarily flood,” reports Lyndon Rayner, Risk Management Officer. said in a Saturday update.
The peak of the predicted hurricane season is still here
Ernesto, the fifth named storm and third hurricane of the current season, has yet to reach its peak and is widely expected to be slightly more active than usual. The season runs from June 1 to November 30 and usually reaches its peak from late August to late September.
The latest forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration calls for 17-24 named storms and 8-13 hurricanes. The forecast calls for 4-7 storms to reach major status, meaning a Category 3 hurricane with winds of at least 111 mph. Annual averages are 14.4 named storms, 7.2 hurricanes and 3.2 major.
Contributed by: Mike Snyder and Eduardo Cuevas
