NY man dies after getting caught in rip currents with other swimmers off the NC coast

A 48-year-old New York man died Thursday after getting caught with other swimmers in rip currents off Cape Hatteras National Seashore on the Outer Banks, according to the National Park Service. At least five other swimmers were rescued., officials said.

Hatteras Island Rescue Squad members saw "multiple groups of swimmers in distress" after responding to a 911 call shortly before 3:30 p.m., according to a National Park Service post.

Squad members used two Jet Skis to return the swimmers to shore, while a bystander on a surfboard took one of the swimmers to the beach, officials said.

None of the swimmers were using flotation devices, according to the Park Service.

The victim, who was from Sayville, New York, was the fourth swimmer to die off the Seashore this year, officials said. His name has yet to be released.

Seven swimmers died off the Seashore in 2017 and eight in 2016, the National Park Service said.

Swimmers on Thursday faced a "moderate risk" of rip currents in the Avon area, according to the Park Service post.

"The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration considers a moderate risk to mean that 'wind, wave and tide conditions support the development of stronger or more frequent rip currents along the beaches," the National Park Service said on Facebook. "Only experienced surf swimmers who know how to escape rip currents should enter the water.”

"We extend our sympathy to the victim's family," Cape Hatteras National Seashore Superintendent David Hallac said in the post. "This tragic event is a very sad reminder of the dangers posed by rip currents.”

North Carolina has had at least 55 recorded rip current deaths since 1996, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The U.S. Lifesaving Association estimates that nearly 100 people die in rip currents each year in the United States, The (Raleigh) News & Observer reported.

Rip currents accounted for more than 80 percent of the 84,900 rescues that lifeguards made in 2016, according to the News & Observer.

On June 13, 10 people were rescued in rip current-related incidents in two hours, according to Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue. Fifteen others were rescued by North Myrtle Beach Ocean Rescue in South Carolina, according to the rescue group, the News & Observer reported.

If you get caught in a rip current, NOAA and the American Red Cross recommend that you:

▪ Remain calm to conserve energy, and don't fight against the current.

▪ Think of it as a treadmill that cannot be turned off and that you need to step to the side of.

▪ Swim out of the current in a direction following the shoreline. When out of the current, swim at an angle – away from the current – toward shore.

▪ Float or calmly tread water If you are unable to swim out of the rip current. When out of the current, swim toward shore.

▪ Wave your arms or yell for help to draw attention to yourself, if you are still unable to reach shore.

Abbie Bennett contributed to this report.

This story was originally published June 28, 2018 at 10:37 PM.