NEWS

Fewer rescues off Volusia beaches but risky, rough conditions persist

Patricio G. Balona
patricio.balona@news-jrnl.com
A beachgoer uses a float to ride the surf in Daytona Beach, Monday, Sept 24, 2018. [News-Journal/Nigel Cook]

Two-to-four-foot waves continued to churn up the rip current risk along Volusia County beaches Monday, though rescues were down from the 72 water saves reported a day earlier, officials said.

"We are flying the red flag because we have similar water conditions, but there are not as many people on the beach today," said Capt. Tammy Malphurs of the Volusia County Beach Safety and Ocean Rescue.

On Sunday, Ocean Rescue personnel kept busy pulling people out of rough surf, rescuing six dozen by the end of Sunday. A 43-year-old Orlando man found unconscious in the water on Sunday remains in critical condition in the hospital, officials said.

By 1 p.m. Monday, there had only been two water rescues on the beach, Malphurs said.

Beach officials said they expect rough ocean conditions to persist through the week.

The moderate risk of rip currents is being produced by a low pressure system, unrelated to Hurricane Florence, off of the Carolinas pushing the swell into our area, said Tim Sedlock, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Melbourne.

The system is generating 10-15 mph winds along our coast and bringing the very active waves to Volusia's shoreline, Sedlock said.

The National Weather Service issued a beach hazard statement on Monday that is in effect till 8 p.m.

Beach visitors are warned that rough breaking waves and rip currents will be a danger on the beaches of east Central Florida all day and the threat of seaward flowing rip currents will be greatest through the late afternoon because of tides, meteorologists said.

The weather service warned beach-goers to swim near a lifeguard and not turn their backs to the ocean as heavy breaking waves can slam into them. 

The summer-like temperatures are expected to linger through the first full week of autumn. Expect highs in the upper 80s, overnight lows in the mid-70s and a 20 to 30 percent chance of showers each day.