DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Volusia County officials are warning swimmers to be cautious as Hurricane Lee travels through the Atlantic. The storm will stay far off the coast, however heavy surf and rip currents are expected.
Officials in Volusia County also said one person died after being pulled from the ocean on Monday in Daytona Beach.
Volusia Beach Safety officials said every year, their lifeguards typically rescue more people along their 47 miles of coast than the rest of Florida’s beaches.
“If you were to combine all of the rescues around the state, they still don’t equal what we do here in a year on Volusia County beaches,” Captain AJ Miller Said.
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“We’ll see swimmers coming out because the swells are big, they grab boards out the rafters, the attics, clean the dust off and they go in the water. And a lot of them probably shouldn’t be out there,” Miller said.
Resident Dan Carlin said it’s too risky to swim during rip current warnings.
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“The thing about the rip currents, it’s hard to know where they’re at too. So you really got to be careful,” Carlin said.
Volusia officials also remind the public to always swim in front of a lifeguard tower.
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