Dear Friends, Experts say if ever caught in a riptide:
Do not struggle against the current. Most riptide deaths are not caused by the tides themselves. People often become exhausted struggling against the current, and cannot make it back to shore.
Do not swim toward shore. You will be fighting the current, and you will lose.
Swim parallel to shore, across the current. Generally speaking, a riptide is less than 100 ft. wide, so swimming beyond it should not be too difficult.(popularmechanics.com)
Blake Ward, a 16-year-old boy from England, tragically died after he was caught in a riptide while swimming in the sea on a family trip to Wales. Blake and two of his friends were rescued by the coast guard on July 31 and flown to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, England, where Blake was then placed on life support. Unfortunately the brain damage was too significant. Now, a goodbye post from his girlfriend of their last moment together is going viral. (thestir.cafemom.com)