VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — As Capt. Andy Bedinger of the Virginia Beach Lifesaving Service describes, 2024 has so far been a relatively quiet summer season for rip current activity.
Incoming severe weather over the weekend may change that and give lifeguards their most persistent test yet with high rip current risk.
“Sand has really been on the move for the last couple of days so things have been unpredictable," Capt. Bedinger said. "With all the moving sand from one day to the next, the rip currents will move.”
By Friday afternoon, Virginia Beach lifeguards had already made one water rescue from a rip current near 24th Street at the city's Oceanfront.
Bedinger anticipates that there may be more throughout the weekend. According to him, approximately 25 percent of water rescues in total come from rip current risks.
“Our surf tends to be pretty small most days, and most people can keep themselves out of trouble until they find themselves in a rip current," he says.
Single red flags will be flying across Virginia Beach lifeguard stations throughout the weekend.
On the Outer Banks, red flags will also be flying for high rip current risks from the beaches of Duck to Ocracoke Island.