ATLANTA — The death of Malcolm Jamal Warner is a grim reminder of the dangers of rip currents. Warner drowned in a rip current during a vacation in Costa Rica.
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Swim instructor Marci Dever remembers the moment she was caught in a rip current off Tybee Island.
“I could feel myself going out and I had to paddle like mad to be right along the shoreline,” remembered Dever.
She spends her day teaching swim lessons to swimmers of all sizes and rip currents are one thing she warns about constantly.
“The best Olympic swimmer cannot swim back to shore in a rip tide,” said Dever.
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Police say Warner was off the coast of Costa Rica on Sunday when he was caught in a rip current. Bystanders brought him to shore, but he didn’t survive. Rip currents are a powerful channel of water that flows away from the shore.
Dever says your response is key to your survival.
“The important thing is to look at the shoreline, if you’re a strong swimmer, paddle along the shoreline,” said Dever about swimming parallel to the shore to get out of the current.
For those who aren’t strong swimmers, it’s about your mindset.
“Relax and the current will take you back to shore,” said Dever. “You have to talk to yourself, and you have to say, ‘OK, I need to calm down.’”
When it comes to kids in the ocean, she says what is meant to be lifesaving can make it dangerous.
“Floaties are like making your child a little Michelin man, and they will float away like a beach ball,” said Dever.
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