Bay Sheriff's Office considers charges for letting kids swim under double-red flags

PANAMA CITY BEACH − Local law enforcement officials are taking steps to make sure parents protect their children at the beach.

According to Capt. Jason Daffin of the Bay County Sheriff's Office, five parents are being investigated for child neglect after they allowed their children to swim in the Gulf of Mexico under double red flags. Of the parents, four are tourists and one is a Bay County resident.

"Kids are going to be kids, and they need adult supervision to keep them from doing things that are dangerous," Daffin said. "You know (the Gulf under double red flags) is a danger. You know it could cause death to the child, and so it's the adult's responsibility to protect that child and make sure they're not in danger."

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He noted all five incidents of the children swimming in double red conditions occurred between June 15 and 24. The parents involved were ticketed $500 under a local ordinance that makes it illegal to swim in the Gulf while double red flags fly.

BCSO is considering additional consequences for the parents because of the severe danger that exists under these conditions. During that same 10-day stretch, eight people drowned while swimming off the coast of Bay County.

Seven drownings were originally reported, however BCSO confirmed Wednesday there was an eighth drowning on June 18. Of the recent string of drownings, six happened off the coast of Panama City Beach, and two happened on an unincorporated Bay County beach outside the city limits. All but one was under double red flags, and the victims of every drowning died after being caught in a rip current.

Rip currents are fast moving currents created by deep channels in surrounding sandbars. These channels often run perpendicular to the shoreline and cause water to funnel faster out into deeper waters of the Gulf. Rips can vary in strength, depending on how developed the channels are, and they can sometimes be identified from shore where there is a gap in the wave break − areas where the white caps of the breaks are less noticeable.

The best thing a beachgoer caught in a rip can do is swim parallel to shore, meaning toward the left or right of where they are in distress. If they do this, they will be able to break free from the current, often landing on a sandbar where they can stand. If they still cannot stand, they will at least be in calmer water where it will be easier to make it back to shore.

Common flag colors used in beach flag warning systems include a green flag for low hazard conditions, a yellow flag for medium hazard conditions, one red flag for high hazard conditions and two red flags for very dangerous conditions.

Panama City Beach, however, never flies green flags because officials say beachgoers should always be cautious anytime they enter the Gulf. Rip currents can always be present, even under clear skies and calmer surf conditions.

As of Wednesday morning, BCSO was still investigating the involved parents and had not yet handed out any charges. Daffin said law enforcement officials did not want to resort to such measures but that it might be necessary to help keep the coast safe.

"I don't want the community to have a bad taste in their mouth about law enforcement, (thinking) that we're just out here trying to arrest families and parents," he said. "This is not like us just sitting back, trying to find a way to arrest people. That's the last thing we want to do. But at the end of the day, our loyalty is to that child and to that minor to protect them. If it takes having to go to that extreme to protect a child ... then it's worth it to us."

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: BCSO might use charges to keep kids out of Gulf under double red