ripcurrents

Rip currents are one of the deadliest, most powerful forces that we as humans face in the ocean. These extreme currents are responsible for more than 150 deaths a year and make up over 80% of all beach rescues. So what causes these currents to happen in oceans all around the world? Rip currents origins all stem from the wind. The wind blows across the ocean forming waves and sending them crashing into the shore line. Once there energy takes them as far up the shoreline as it can, the water then recedes back into the ocean. When a lot of waves get concentrated in one area of the shore, the force generated from these waves backwards momentum can become powerful enough to take you with it. Riptides can be formed formed from anywhere as close as 200 feet or as far away as 2,500 feet away from the shoreline. So next time before jumping into the ocean be sure to look for riptide warning flags and look for their tell tale signs.