Maximum alert for rip currents on Atlantic beaches: how to protect yourself from the risk of drowning?

Vigilance is required at the start of the summer holidays on the Atlantic coast. The beaches of Charente-Maritime, Gironde, Landes, and Pyrénées-Atlantiques are on high alert this Monday due to rip currents . Small pools of water that form in bathing areas that appear safe, calm, and welcoming.

But when the tide rises, these small natural pools are crossed by dangerous sea currents which carry bathers out to sea.

A risk not to be taken lightly, recalls Commander Alban Simon, spokesperson for the Atlantic maritime prefecture:

"The rip currents are dangerous because they create fairly strong currents that pull you out to sea and against which it is extremely difficult to swim using only your arms," ​​he explained to RMC .

As a result, many swimmers run out of energy and end up drowning, exhausted from struggling against the currents.

To be aware of the risk of rip currents, Commander Alban Simon recommends finding out in advance: "What we recommend is to carefully check the opening hours of the lifeguard stations. There are times when you can swim and others when you can't. And when you can't, you shouldn't go, especially if you're a child," he emphasizes.

The spokesperson for the Atlantic Maritime Prefecture gives his safety instructions and the right reflexes to have: “If you are swept away by a rip current, conserve your energy, try to alert the emergency services,” while swimmers caught in its currents are recommended to let themselves float, even if it means being carried a little out to sea, to get out of the danger zone.

"Once emergency services are alerted, they will respond very quickly. And above all, you must warn your loved ones when you are going swimming so that they can call emergency services if you are unable to do so," adds Alban Simon.

In 2023, fourteen swimmers died in rip currents on the Atlantic coast, according to the maritime prefecture.