Has ocean drowning increased, or does it just seem so?

[Anonymous]

I grew up going to the Jersey shore every summer and I don't recall hearing about drowning incidents, although I'm sure they happened. Maybe it's the internet, but I feel like ocean drownings are becoming way more common. In the last week alone, two people died off the coast of NJ and another in Massachusetts. Obviously Hurricane Erin made things more dangerous, this past week, but is that the only factor? Are rip currents worse than they used to? Maybe there are more inexperienced swimmers at the beach?

[Anonymous]

Here is some data on drowning: https://www.cdc.gov/drowning/data-research/index.html

https://www.weather.gov/safety/ripcurrent-fatalities

[Anonymous]

People don't listen to experts or authority anymore. They "do their own research." And sometimes they drown.

[Anonymous]

I’m sure it’s definitely increased.

Didn’t you hear about Theo ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m sure it’s definitely increased.

Didn’t you hear about Theo ?

I think more people are swimming at unguarded beaches because or AirBnb, and are unaware of the risks.

[Anonymous]

This surf in the mid-Atlantic has been especially rough this summer, contributing to rip currents and dangerous shorebreak.

[Anonymous]

Social. Media.

[Anonymous]

I grew up going to the Jersey shore and I’m 100% sure my parents didn’t know anything about rip currents. My dad never really went to the ocean as a kid and my mom just doesn’t think bad things can happen to her. I was never taught how dangerous the ocean can be.

I wonder if there are just more people traveling now, so there are more people at the beach who don’t understand the risks.

[Anonymous]

Just getting more media. I think (no stats) drownings have decreased. We now track rip currents, and educate on how to swim. Drownings have always been very common along the coast, in rivers and lakes.

[Anonymous]

What's happening is, you clicked or even just lingered too long on a social media post about drowning, and now they know that engages you, and so you see every single report of drowning. So you think there are more drownings and that it's a problem and that makes you even MORE likely to engage with those stories.

There aren't actually more drownings; I haven't seen any increase in coverage of drownings in my media ecosystem. It's just what your tailored feeds are showing you.

This is exactly, by the way, why so many boomers are terrified of crime and think that cities are crime ridden. Because they engage with those stories and so they get more of them. It has absolutely no relation to how much crime there is.

[Anonymous]

It’s definitely way up.

Remember the recent TJ grad who just drowned in the ocean a few months back?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up going to the Jersey shore and I’m 100% sure my parents didn’t know anything about rip currents. My dad never really went to the ocean as a kid and my mom just doesn’t think bad things can happen to her. I was never taught how dangerous the ocean can be.

I wonder if there are just more people traveling now, so there are more people at the beach who don’t understand the risks.

I also grew up going to the Jersey shore and my parents definitely did know about undertow. This was not top secret knowledge.

[Anonymous]

We have whole new generations of people who think the rules don’t apply to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up going to the Jersey shore and I’m 100% sure my parents didn’t know anything about rip currents. My dad never really went to the ocean as a kid and my mom just doesn’t think bad things can happen to her. I was never taught how dangerous the ocean can be.

I wonder if there are just more people traveling now, so there are more people at the beach who don’t understand the risks.

I also grew up going to the Jersey shore and my parents definitely did know about undertow. This was not top secret knowledge.

Undertow and rip currents are different things, but many people use them interchangeably and still don’t understand the difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up going to the Jersey shore and I’m 100% sure my parents didn’t know anything about rip currents. My dad never really went to the ocean as a kid and my mom just doesn’t think bad things can happen to her. I was never taught how dangerous the ocean can be.

I wonder if there are just more people traveling now, so there are more people at the beach who don’t understand the risks.

I also grew up going to the Jersey shore and my parents definitely did know about undertow. This was not top secret knowledge.

Undertow and rip currents are different things, but many people use them interchangeably and still don’t understand the difference.

DP here I was born in 1980 and knew both of these terms as long as I can remember. We also were told don’t turn your back on the ocean, no swimming alone, do go in past your knees, etc.

People think nothing bad can happen to them. They are wrong.