"Even skilled Coast Guard officers are in danger if they are swept away by large swells."

Yesterday (the 10th), as a rescue worker from the Sokcho Coast Guard entered Naksan Beach in Yangyang-gun, Gangwon Province, where strong swells were crashing, the body that had been close to the shore was instantly pushed out toward the open sea.

This was a reenactment of being caught in a rip current.

From the beach, it looked like ordinary waves, but underwater, a strong current pushed the rescue worker out toward the sea.

The Sokcho Coast Guard held an experiential promotional event at Naksan Beach on this day to raise awareness of the dangers of rip currents for a group of reporters covering the agency.

Earlier, the Naksan Coast Guard Substation explained the causes and characteristics of rip currents, accident cases, and survival tips when caught in one.

A rip current is a phenomenon where seawater that has rushed ashore rapidly flows back out to sea through a narrow channel.

To the naked eye, it looks no different from the surrounding ocean, but once caught, a person can be rapidly swept far away from the shore.

The Coast Guard directly entered the water to reenact a rip current situation precisely to warn of these hidden underwater dangers that are not easily visible.

These dangers are not limited only to designated beaches.

According to accident statistics, accidents are concentrated in unapproved beaches where safety management is relatively difficult, rather than in designated beaches where safety personnel are stationed at all times.

According to the Donghae Coast Guard, a total of 21 accidents occurred this summer across beaches and coastal areas in five regions—including Sokcho, Gangneung, Donghae, Uljin, and Pohang—resulting in 13 deaths.

Among them, 1 accident occurred at a designated beach resulting in 1 death, while 20 accidents occurred at unapproved beaches resulting in 12 fatalities.

This means that the vast majority of all deaths occurred at unapproved beaches.

Unlike designated beaches, unapproved beaches often lack adequate safety management systems such as the deployment of safety personnel and restrictions on entering the water, making the risk of accidents even higher.

The causes of accidents were not limited to simple water play.

There were cases of people suffering accidents while taking photos, dipping their feet in the water, or gathering shellfish and seafood.

Cases of people dying while snorkeling also continued.

On July 29, a drowning accident occurred while swimming at Bongpo Beach in Sokcho, resulting in 1 death.

On August 2, a drowning accident occurred while people were swimming at an unapproved beach between the Gangneung Jumunjin Youth Center and Hyangho Beach.

Sokcho Coast Guard Chief Shin Kyung-jin stated, "East Coast swells and rip currents are extremely dangerous, placing Coast Guard rescue workers in perilous situations as well," and urged people to "refrain from entering the water during large swells."

(Photo provided by Sokcho Coast Guard, Yonhap News)