Beach Safety: Life-Saving Wisdom From Our Rockaway Community
Beach Safety: Life-Saving Wisdom From Our Rockaway Community
Summer drownings on New York’s beaches continue to claim lives—but they don’t have to. Those of us who live by the ocean understand its beauty and hidden dangers. We’ve created a 7-part video series featuring real Rockaway residents, lifeguards, and Swim Strong families sharing the water safety knowledge that keeps our community alive.
The Hard Truth
A beautiful day outside doesn’t guarantee a beautiful day in the water. Storms 1,500 miles away in the Caribbean can create deadly rip currents on our beaches. Clean waters bring sharks closer to shore. Sandbars shift without warning, and jetties create washing machine effects that can be fatal.
Your Teachers: People Who Live This Every Day
Our videos feature Tristan, a certified lifeguard who knows exactly what to watch for, alongside Rockaway parents, students, and local families who’ve learned to read the ocean’s moods. These aren’t actors—they’re your neighbors sharing hard-earned wisdom that could save your life.
Essential Safety Reminders
Always swim where lifeguards are present. Never swim alone. Know your limits and stay within them. Pay attention to lifeguard whistles and follow their directions immediately. Check water temperature before entering—ocean water can be 30+ degrees colder than air temperature, leading to hypothermia.
If caught in a rip current: Wave for help, don’t panic, flip to your back and float to conserve energy. Rip currents pull you out, not down. If possible, swim parallel to shore until you escape the current.
Respect marine life: Sharks aren’t trying to eat humans—we’re not their food. Their poor eyesight means they may bump or bite unfamiliar objects, which causes serious injuries when they try to spit us out. Get out immediately at any sign of sharks.
Beyond the Beach
This isn’t just about ocean safety. Drowning happens in 2 inches of water in as little as 2 minutes—often silently. Home water dangers include bathtubs, toilets, buckets, and pet bowls. Always supervise children around any water, designate dedicated water watchers at parties (no distractions—no phones, food, or drinks), and ensure proper life jacket fit.
Take Action
Share these videos widely. Every share could reach a family heading to the beach who needs this information. Tag friends planning beach trips, share in community groups, forward to schools and camps.
Learn to swim. Watching safety videos is important, but swimming skills are life-changing. Swim Strong Foundation offers professional instruction because we believe every family deserves the confidence to enjoy water safely.
Support water safety education. Our “Know Before You Go” program reaches thousands of students annually with situational water awareness—not just swimming skills, but understanding water in all aspects of daily life.
The best day at the water is the one where everyone goes home safe. These videos could save your life or someone you love.
The Power of Community Knowledge
This isn’t just another safety video. This is your neighbors sharing hard-earned wisdom. These are the voices of people who choose to live by the ocean because they love it—and who’ve learned to survive it because they respect it.
Our Rockaway community knows that storms 1,500 miles away in the Caribbean can create dangerous rip currents on our beaches. We know that the cleanest waters bring sharks closer to shore. We know that sandbars shift and jetties create washing machine effects that can be deadly.
Special Thanks
We’re grateful to filmmaker Kye Weaver for capturing these important messages, and to musician Ed Accura for allowing us to incorporate his powerful song “No Lifeguard” into our project. Ed’s previous film “Blacks Can’t Swim” helped us challenge stereotypes—now his music underscores how critical lifeguard protection really is.
