Break The Grip of The Rip!®
Rip Current Awareness Week
June 1-7, 2008

In an effort to heighten public awareness of rip currents at surf beaches, each year NOAA designates the first full week of June as national Rip Current Awareness Week, coinciding with the traditional start of the summer vacation season.

Rip currents are currents of water moving away from shore. The strongest rip currents can attain speeds reaching 8 feet per second; this is faster than an Olympic swimmer can sprint! On average, more people die every year from rip currents than from shark attacks, tornadoes or lightning. According to the United States Lifesaving Association, 80 percent of surf beach rescues are attributed to rip currents, and more than 100 people die annually from drowning in rip currents.

For the 2008 campaign, NOAA's National Weather Service, National Sea Grant College Program, the National Park Service, and the United States Lifesaving Association have joined together to increase rip current awareness and education. This year's campaign includes a Public Service Announcement, signage, brochures, videos, animations, and educational materials.

We strongly encourage you to use information, graphics, video and all other resources on this and other government pages with some restrictions.

• News Release: June 5, 2007
• 2007 Press Release Event Photos
• Florida Governor's Proclamation for Rip Current Awareness Week

Multimedia

• Ian Crocker Radio Public Service Announcement, English
• Public Service Announcement Spanish
• Rip Current PSA: How to Swim to Safety, 98 mg, Due to file size, NWS strongly recommends downloading this file to your computer rather than playing online. To download, click right side of mouse and select "save link as"
• Rip Current Animation with swimmer
• Rip Current Animation with arrows only
• Rip Current Footage
• Interviews:
  • Former NWS Director
  • Coastal Research Scientist
  • Lifeguard
  • Meteorologist, WFO Mount Holly, NJ

B-Roll

For 2007, the NWS developed a new DVD for the above files in chapter format. The DVD includes:

• English and Spanish Language PSAs,
• Animation
• Rip Current Footage
• The four Interviews
• Beachfront Sign

It may be purchased at a nominal price from:
Video Transfer, Inc.
5800 Arundel Avenue
Rockville, MD 20852
301-881-0270
Fax: 301-770-9131
videotransfer@movielab.com

More Educational Resources

• Rip Current Jeopardy Game, pps
• Rip Current Videos aimed at Teenagers: 30 second with script, 1 minute with script, 9 minute with script, coming soon
• Photos of rip currents on Delaware, Florida, New Jersey and California beaches
• NOAA-The Weather Channel rip current vignette. Due to file size, NWS strongly recommends downloading this file to your computer rather than playing online. To download, click right side of mouse and select "save link as"AVI (40mg). Also available through Video Transfer above.
• USLA Rip Current Video for Teens
  • 9 minutes, 75mg: mov, mpg, text
  • 60 second, 10 mg: mov, mpg, text
  • 30 second, 5 mg: mov, mpg, text
• National Signs, Sticker and Brochures
• Mark Trail Rip Current Cartoon
• Wave Basin demo, mpg

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