December 2015 (ROTM#84) Any Groyne, Pier, Jetty or Breakwall on a Surf Beach

I'm not sure of the location of this one, but the photo was sent to me by Bob Pratt of the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project courtesy of www.photopilot.com. The Great Lakes have a rip current drowning problem that is mostly associated with rip currents next to manmade structures like piers and groynes. When you get waves breaking at an angle to the beach, you either get a circulating rip forming in the shadow (protected end) of the structure or you get a rip ejecting offshore as the longshore currents are deflected by the structure. Sometimes you can get both.

This picture shows a very strong rip being deflected offshore behind an offshore breakwall. Breakwalls are protective barriers constructed just offshore in order to protect the shoreline. They do this very well and tend to promote sand deposition and the development of a tombolo. That's all great, except as you can see from this photo they can also cause rip current action which is not good, as the protected areas are often considered safe areas to swim.

So it's just another lesson that you should be very careful swimming anywhere near a manmade structure along any beach when there's breaking waves. In fact, I'd avoid it entirely!

Structures deflect water offshore