Following several drownings and the need for lifeguards to save hundreds of other swimmers over the Labor Day holiday weekend, strong ocean rip currents along the mid-Atlantic coast created dangerous swimming conditions on Tuesday.
The National Weather Service continued to issue rip current warnings Tuesday from New York to North Carolina, and that organization also advised swimmers to exercise extra caution and only swim in areas where lifeguards were on duty.
In some places, swimmers were prohibited from entering the water because of extremely choppy water, a lack of lifeguards, or both.
According to officials, the remnants of hurricanes Franklin and Idalia were the cause of the hazardous currents.
They cautioned that those caught in rip currents risk being swept far from the shore very quickly and noted that swimming away from the shore is not the best course of action.
A 22-year-old Dominican man who was swimming with two other people when he started having trouble in the water off Beach Haven on Sunday was among at least three fatalities reported in New Jersey, according to the Asbury Park Press.
In an effort to save the swimmers, more than a dozen lifeguards formed a human chain. The third one vanished under the water, and his body was discovered a few hours later, while the other two were brought to land safely.
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