Underwater currents in coastal waters (Rip current). Currents of the Black Sea

Many people who feel great in the water do not understand how it is possible to drown near the sea or ocean shore. Most believe that in such cases alcohol intoxication is to blame, but sometimes we are talking about a completely different phenomenon - a rip current.

Here's what it looks like schematically. The picture shows reflux towards the sea, it runs perpendicular to the shore:
The rip current, or, as foreigners also call it, rip current (rip), is one of the most hazardous phenomena. It is in these currents that they drown like ordinary people, and first-class swimmers, because they simply do not know how to behave.

You try to resist the current in order to swim out, but nothing happens. A couple of moments, and panic begins ...

The most dangerous for people are the rip currents of shallow seas with a gentle, low-lying coast, which is framed by sand spits, shoals and islets (Gulf of Mexico, Sea of ​​Azov, etc.). In this case, at low tide, the masses of water cannot gradually return to the open sea due to the sand bar holding them back. The water pressure on the narrow strait connecting the estuary with the sea increases sharply. At this point, a rapid is formed, along which water rushes back to the sea with high speed(up to 2.5-3.0 m / s), forming, as it were, a river in the middle of the sea

It looks like a river

Such corridors appear anywhere on the beach, near the shore, during high tides. Waves, one after another, roll in and bring more and more more water, then with different speed go back to the sea or ocean, forming a reverse current.

In this photo, the streams of seething water are not so pronounced, but the current itself and, unfortunately, the people who fell into it are clearly visible:


How to determine this current, so as not to fall into it? Pay attention to the following markings:

Visible channel of seething water, perpendicular to the shore.

Coastal area with changed water color (say, everything around is blue or green, but some area is white).

A section of foam, some kind of marine vegetation, bubbles, which is steadily moving from the coast to the open sea.

Gap in overall structure tidal waves (a continuous strip of waves, and in the middle a 5-10-meter gap).

If you see any of the above, consider yourself lucky and just don't go swimming in this place. What if you don't see any of the 4 signs? So, you are out of luck, because 80% of dangerous spontaneously occurring rips do not visually manifest themselves in any way.

Rip currents occur near the shore. That is, even if you are standing in water up to your waist, and even more so up to your chest, you can be picked up by a rip and carried into the sea. But just those who do not know how to swim do just that - they just stand in the water and enjoy.

Therefore, do not swim alone and, of course, do not ignore the red flags and signs on the beach.

Rules of conduct in the rip current:
1 Don't panic!

When we panic, we are guided by the instinct of self-preservation, and do not rely on common sense. Knowing about the rules of behavior in rip, you will get out in 100 cases out of 100.

2 Save energy!

Don't fight the current and don't paddle back to shore. Unfortunately, it's useless. You need to row not to the shore, but to the side (that is, parallel to the shore). If the rip is narrow (up to 5 meters), you will quickly get out of it.

3 If the rip is wide (from 20 meters or more), what should I do?

It will not be possible to get out of it so easily, even if you row according to the rules - to the side. Once you realize that you can’t get out, you can relax, but don’t panic! The fact is that the reverse current is short-lived, and after 5 minutes it will stop and leave you alone. After that, swim 50-100 meters, first to the side, and only then to the shore. If you immediately swim to the shore, there is a chance that the current will resume in the same place and you will fall into it again

It is important to consider the following points:
1 Rip will never drag you down.

It's not a whirlpool or a funnel. All the rip currents in the world drag from the shore along the surface, but not to the depth!

2 The rip is not too wide.

Usually its width does not exceed 50 meters. And most often limited to only 10-20 meters. That is, having swum along the coast literally 20-30 meters, you will feel that you have swum out of the rip.

3 Rip length is limited.

The current will weaken rather quickly, the channel ends its "work" where the waves reach their peak and begin to break. In surfer language, this place is called “line up” (line up). In this place, all surfers usually hang out and try to ride the incoming waves. Usually it is no further than 100 meters from the coast.

4 Please tell your friends about this phenomenon. Let as much as possible more people learn about rip currents. Thus, you will save not only your life, but also other people.

Currents of the Black Sea

The results of our studies of the currents of the Northern and Middle Caspian significantly differed from the ideas that were most widespread. Therefore, we sought to compare them with the published results of studies in other reservoirs. Gradually, we moved from studies of the Caspian currents to studies of the nature of specific types of currents - wind, thermohaline, quasi-permanent circulations, long-wave, inertial, etc. in various water bodies - in the Black Sea, in the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bOkhotsk, in lakes Ladoga, Huron, etc. ., in those reservoirs for which it is possible to find the results of measurements.

This approach significantly expands the amount of experimental data suitable for analysis. We can compare the parameters of currents in different water bodies. This will allow a better understanding of the properties of the studied processes of formation and existence of currents. The main research methods were invented during the research of the currents of the Northern and Middle Caspian.

Let us consider the results of instrumental observations of currents in various seas and in large lakes.

2.1. Currents of the Black Sea

The area of ​​the Black Sea is 423,488 km. The greatest width along the parallel 42°21′ N.L. - 1148 km., along the meridian 31 ° 12′ E - 615 km. Coastline length 4074 km.

Rice. 2.1. Scheme of the Black Sea water circulation. 1 - Annular cyclonic current (CCT) - the average position of the core; 2 - CCT meanders; 3 – coastal anticyclonic eddies (SAWs); 4 – cyclonic eddies (CV); 5 - Batumi anticyclonic eddy; 6 - Kaliyar surfactant; 7 - Sevastopol surfactant; 8 - Kerch surfactant; 9 - quasi-stationary cyclonic gyres (Kosyan R. D. et al. 2003).

The general circulation of the Black Sea waters - the Main Black Sea Current (RCC) is characterized by cyclonic water movement (Fig. 2.1). Its main structural element is the Ring cyclonic current(CCT). Off the Caucasian coast, the CTC occupies a strip along the coast 50-60 km wide and carries its waters in a general direction to the northwest. center line The flow can be traced at a distance of 20-35 km from the coast, where the velocities reach 60-80 cm/s. This current penetrates to a depth of 150-200 m in summer period, 250-300 m in winter period, sometimes to a depth of 350-400 m. The current core experiences undulating oscillations, deviates either to the right or to the left from its jet the current meanders. On fig. 2.1. the most common idea about the structure of the Black Sea currents is presented.

The results of current measurements carried out over a period of 5 months in coastal waters in the northeastern part of the Black Sea are shown in fig. 2.2.

In the figures, we see that the currents cover the entire water column, the changes are synchronous at all horizons.

Rice. 2.2. A fragment of the time sequence of half-hour current vectors from December 20 to December 23, 1997. Point 1 - horizons 5, 26 and 48 m; point 2 - horizons 5 and 26 m; point 3 - horizon 10 m (Kosyan R. D. et al. 2003).

These studies were not filtered to identify long-period wave currents. The measurements continued for 5 months, i.e. it is possible to show about 5 periods of variability of long-period wave currents and their variability at different points, the difference and common features as you move away from the coast. Instead, the authors provide explanations that are consistent with traditional views.

Rice. 2.3. The location of the devices south coast Crimean peninsula in paragraphs 1–5 (Ivanov V. A., Yankovsky A. E. 1993).

Rice. 2.4. The variability of the speed of currents at measurement points 3 and 5 (Fig. 2.12) at a horizon of 50 m. High-frequency oscillations with a period of 18 hours. And less filtered with a Gaussian filter. (Ivanov V. A., Yankovsky A. E. 1993).

Measurements of currents in the coastal zone with the help of autonomous buoy stations (ABS) were carried out near the southern coast of the Crimean Peninsula in the Black Sea at 6 points on 4 horizons from June to September 1991 (Fig. 2.3). (Ivanov V. A., Yankovsky A. E. 1993).

One of the main tasks is the study of waves captured by the coast. Long-wave currents with a period of 250.-300 h. and amplitude up to 40 cm / s. (Fig. 2.4). The phase propagated to the west at a speed of 2 m/s. (Note that the value of the phase velocity is obtained from the calculation, and not from the difference in the time of passage of the wave at two neighboring points).

Water circulation in the upper layer of the Black Sea is shown according to drifter data (Zhurbas V. M. et al. 2004). More than 61 drifters were launched in the Black Sea, which were carried by the large-scale circulation along the coast.

Rice. 2.5. Drifter trajectory No. 16331 in the southwestern part of the Black Sea. The numbers on the trajectory are the day that has passed since the start of the drifter (Zhurbas V. M. et al. 2004).

The patterns of drifter advancement show the patterns of currents. The most common misconception about the nature of currents in the Black Sea is that cyclonic circulation currents are jet meandering current. Meanders, breaking away from the main jet, form vortices. The authors demonstrate such a “vortex” in Fig. 2.5.

The following figure (2.6) shows the variability of the components of the speed of movement (flow) of the drifter along the trajectory. The periodic variability of the flow velocity is clearly visible. The period of variability is from 2 two to 7 days. Speed ​​changes from - 40 cm/s. up to 50 cm/s, but the average velocity (thick line) is close to zero. The drifter moves in a circular path. It reflects the movement of the water mass of wave nature.

Bondarenko A.L. (2010) shows the path of one of the drifters in the Black Sea (Fig. 2.7), and the variability of the speed of drifter advance along the trajectory (Fig. 2.8). As well as in previous work it can be seen that currents of a wave nature are observed, and not a jet, meandering current. Attracts attention the path traveled by the drifter in initial period your swimming. The starting point (0) is in the center of the western part of the sea.

Rice. 2.6. Time series of drifter velocity components 16331. Ut-longitudinal velocity component (+/- respectively east/west), Vt-latitudinal component [Zhurbas V. M. et al. 2004].

According to the ideas (Fig. 2.1), this point is outside the CCT. But we see that the drifter made a path of cyclonic orientation along an almost stretched ellipse, then moved to the southwest for 20 days. direction, where he got to the CCT and moved in it all the way. This trajectory can be used to calculate the flow velocity in different areas trajectory, and (Fig. 2.8) one can see the periodicity of the v.h. and n.h. variability of this speed.

Rice. 2.7. Drifter's path in the Black Sea ( Bondarenko A. L., 2010).

The examples of measurements considered above show that the Main Black Sea Current, the Circular Cyclonic Current (CCT) is the resultant movement of long-period wave currents. The understanding of the geostrophic nature of the CCC currents and its meandering is erroneous. The period of variability of wave currents in the northern part is 260 hours. As we move along the coast, due to the unevenness of the coastline and bottom surface, the components of the current velocity across the coast become commensurate with the components along the coast, the trajectories of drifters acquire an annular shape. The period of change is greatly reduced.

Rice. 2.8. AND variability of drifter movement speed along the trajectory shown in Fig. 2.7.(Bondarenko A. L., 2010) .

Many people who are good swimmers or float well do not understand how one can drown near the shore. When they hear news reports during the holiday season about tourists "who died near the shore", they think that the victims either did not know how to swim or were able to alcohol intoxication. But they are wrong. What then is the reason?

It's about about a very dangerous, but little-known phenomenon - rip currents, which are often also called "pulls" and "rips" (English - rip current). There are rip currents in all corners of the planet, in the Gulf of Mexico, the Black Sea, and the island of Bali. These insidious rips can not only be handled by ordinary people, but also by first-class swimmers who do not know how to behave in this situation.

Everything happens unexpectedly: you sailed away from the shore, and then turned back, but nothing happens ... You swim with all your might, but remain in one place or even move further away. All attempts are unsuccessful, your strength is running out and you are close to panic...

To begin with, it is important to understand the principle of operation of the rip. This is a type of marine ocean currents, directed at right angles to the shore and formed in the process of discharge of the flow of surging water towards the sea.

The most dangerous are rip currents in shallow seas with a gentle coast, which is framed by sandbars, spits and islands (the Sea of ​​Azov, etc.). In these places, at low tide, sand bars prevent the return of a mass of water into the sea. The water pressure on the narrow strait connecting the sea with the estuary increases many times over. As a result, a fast stream is formed, along which water moves at a speed of 2.5-3.0 m / s.

These "corridors" appear in different places close to the shore at high tide. Waves roll and bring water mass, and then at different speeds go into the sea or ocean, forming a reverse current. This is observed in areas where high and low tides often occur.

In the attached picture with a red arrow, the streams of seething water are not so noticeable, but the current itself and the people who have fallen into it are clearly visible.

Most often, the width of the rip is 2-3 m, and the speed of the current is 4-5 km / h, which is not dangerous.
But from time to time there are "draughts" up to 50 m wide, up to 200-400 m long and up to 15 km/h! This happens much less frequently. But it happens!
How to learn to distinguish places where there are rips, so as not to get into them? First of all pay attention to the following characteristic signs:

The visible channel of seething water is perpendicular to the shore;

• In the coastal zone, there are areas with a different shade of water: for example, everything around is light blue or greenish, and some area is white. Areas with foam moving seaweed and bubbles that move from the shore to the open sea;
• In a continuous strip of tidal waves there is a 5-10-meter gap;

If you notice any of the above, never swim in this place. But the danger is that 80% of sudden rips do not manifest themselves outwardly. It is in their "tenacious paws" that most tourists fall. Only professional rescuers can identify such zones.

It is important to remember that rip currents often occur near the shore, so they are able to drag even people standing in the water up to their waist or chest. And if swimmers have great chances to escape, then people who cannot swim have critically few of them. Therefore, do not swim alone and do not enter places that seem suspicious to you.

Give preference to busy beaches where lifeguards are on duty.

• And always pay attention to the red flags and signs on the beach in places where it is strictly forbidden to swim. This is not a joke!

And the most important point! How to behave for those who fell into such a current?

Rules of conduct in the rip current

1. Get over the panic! Pull yourself together, because people knowing the rules behavior in rip are saved in 99% of cases.

2. Save your strength! No need to row with all your might against the current, losing energy reserves. You need to swim not to the shore, but to the side, parallel to the beach. If the rip is narrow (up to 5 m), you will get out of it very quickly.

3. Analyze! If you row according to the rules - to the side, but you can’t get out, then the rip is wide (from 20 m and more). Then immediately stop wasting energy and panicking! The reverse flow is usually short-lived and after 3-4 minutes it will stop. After that, sail 50-100 m to the side, and only then return to the shore with respite.

The following facts will help you avoid panic:

Rip won't drag you down. Most often, the rip currents are short and the upper layer of water moves at high speed, which supports floating objects.

The rip is not very wide. Its width does not exceed 50 m. And in most cases it is only 10-20 m. As a result, having swum along the coast for literally 20-30 m, you will notice that you have come out of the rip.

The length of the rip is limited. The current weakens rather quickly, the "pull" loses its strength where the waves reach a peak and begin to break. In surfer slang, this place is called "line up" (line up). Just in it all the surfers gather, preparing to conquer the incoming waves. Usually the "line up" is located no further than 100 m from the coast.

According to beach lifeguards, in the most different cities Thailand, Russian tourists, like no one else, ignore the rules of conduct on open water, resulting in incidents with them being the most common. That is why we want to talk in detail about the danger, which, at times, lurk in the azure coastal waters kingdoms.

Undercurrents or, as they are indicated on warning signs, Rip current, can be a great danger to a bathing person, even on close range from the shore (at a depth to the waist, and sometimes, to the ankle). In a matter of seconds, they are able to carry even the most experienced and strong swimmer far into the open sea. RIPs can be the result of tides or occur due to subsidence of underwater soil, or are formed from monsoon winds There are many options and sometimes it is very difficult to predict them.

What is the danger?

There are several options for the development of events, depending on how far a person is from the coast.

1. The most common is when those who want to splash in the depths swim far from the shore. After the swimmers have enjoyed the open sea to their heart's content, they try to return, but they realize that no matter how hard they try, not only are they not getting closer, but they are even further away from the shore.
2. Another option is when at a shallow depth (from the ankle to the waist) the bathers realize that they are simply not able to get out of the water, and the so-called “squeeze” current (which occurs when the wave rolls back from the shore) pulls them in for everything great depth and from there to the open sea.
3. And finally, the third option, when vacationers, also at shallow depths, frolic in the surf and do not follow its interval. In this case, the first unnoticed wave knocks the swimmer off his feet, the second one covers, depriving him of oxygen and dragging him to a great depth. The man tries to get up, but he is again covered and pulled away by the next wave. At some point, a swollen, exhausted and completely disoriented swimmer realizes that there is no longer a bottom under his feet, and he is blown into the sea.

Why do we describe these situations in such detail?

The fact is that even though Russia is washed by 13 seas, most of the inhabitants of our country are simply not familiar with the nature and laws of the oceans. It is very difficult for a person who has never lived by the sea to understand how one can drown while knee-deep in water?

In addition, many of our compatriots consider themselves very experienced and strong swimmers - every day they swim a kilometer in the pool in their homeland or even have a sports category in swimming. And therefore, they will definitely cope with some kind of flow there.

Still others naively believe that such things can happen to anyone, but not to them. The Russian mentality is very often aggravated under the influence of alcoholic beverages, without which many people cannot imagine rest. The result of all this is a large proportion of Russian tourists among those drowned off the coast of Thailand.

girl case

For those who still doubt the insidiousness of the sea king, we will give a completely incredible story one girl who decided to take a picture on the shore, standing ankle-deep in water, at a time when the beach was closed for swimming.

In a series of five photographs taken over a period of 30 seconds, you can clearly see how the first wave begins to pull the posing girl into the sea, while the second wave is already coming from behind, knocking her down and pulling her even further. In the next frame, we see a girl who is completely in the seething water already a few meters from the place where she was photographed.

Saved the girl. But the commotion on the beach was strong.

How do you know if you can swim?

With our article, we do not want to say that you cannot swim in Thailand, this is not so. You can and should swim, but after learning from local residents and beach workers about the presence of danger and closely monitoring the behavior of the ocean.

On many beaches today they install special characters, notifying about the presence of Rip current. If red flags are posted, it means that swimming is strictly prohibited. Remember, you will not be forcibly kept ashore, as they do, for example, in Vietnam. But know that by climbing into the water, you risk not only your life, but also the life of rescuers or other people who, in which case, will rush to your aid.

It is most likely to fall into the paws of the undercurrent during the monsoons, which come at a certain time. In Phuket, for example, it is May-October. Also, due to the different underwater landscape, the beaches have a different probability of occurrence of such phenomena. Again, in Phuket, Karon, Surin, Kata, Kata Noi and Nai Harn enjoy a bad reputation in this regard.

Rules of conduct on the water

1. Before entering the water, make sure that the beach is open for swimming (red flags indicate that swimming is prohibited);
2. Don't swim behind the buoys;
3. Children should never swim alone on a beach where counter currents are possible;
4. Watch the wave cycle. Always keep them in sight;
5. When leaving the sea, make sure that the waves coming from behind do not knock you off your feet;
6. Have a safety pin in your trunks in case your arm or leg cramps.

If you are caught in a Rip current and you are carried away from the shore

• Don't try to fight the elements. The very first thing you have to do is to control yourself and deal with the panic.
• Notice the landmarks on the shore, then to understand where to return.
• You can choose any of the ways to deal with RIP:

1. Further, slowly, saving strength, start swimming along the coast, i.e. perpendicular to the flow.
2. Start rowing towards the shore only when you feel that you have swum out of the current or got into a countercurrent that is carrying you to the shore. Be prepared for the fact that you will have to swim quite a lot (300-400 meters, and possibly a kilometer).

Bathing in coastal waves:

1. Ocean waves are longer and more powerful than sea waves. For those who are used to swimming in the sea, this sometimes becomes an unpleasant surprise.
2. If you do not know the features of the bottom (you can get acquainted with it at low tide), do not go into the sea into the waves. This is fraught with dangerous injuries.
3. Always notice the cycle of the waves and keep them in your field of vision.
4. If the wave knocked you down and swirled underwater, hold your breath and relax. So you save oxygen, and your cerebellum will quickly understand where the bottom is, and where the top is. As you surface, be aware of the wave interval.

Have a safe holiday!

The danger of swimming in the sea

Reverse flow or Rip

Many Russian tourists and vacationers do not know what awaits them when swimming in the sea with waves. Everyone likes to enjoy riding the waves, jumping or diving into the oncoming wave. Yes, this is often a pleasure and does not portend trouble, the bottom is nearby, and the coast is not far away. At the same time, if you have a rest through a travel agency, they usually never warn you what to expect when swimming and what dangers may arise at this place of rest. And this is deadly reflux or whatever it is called RIP. It will be deadly dangerous if you do not know how to get out of it.

Imagine ocean waves crashing on the shore bringing more and more water. And all this water mass does not remain on land, but returns back to the ocean. This reverse movement of water occurs through channels that result from the action of waves breaking on the shore.

The waves break on the coastal shallows, and then, accumulating in one place, go back, forming a reverse current, as if the river is flowing in the ocean. And this place is the most dangerous on the whole beach. In this channel, the current speed can reach 2-3 meters per second, and if you suddenly fall into it, you will be abruptly carried away from the shore. At this point, most people start to panic, they frantically fight the current and row back towards the shore. But the waves continue to cover, and, having lost strength, a person is at serious risk of drowning.

Story real person been in this situation:

“That's exactly what happened to us. For many years we have been vacationing in different places in our country and abroad, but we didn’t know anything about it, no one ever warned about it that it was dangerous and even deadly. And so, ohrested in Thailand on Coron beach, there were not big waves (there, in principle, there are almost always waves), we decided to jump with my wife on the waves, while we didn’t go deep, only waist-deep. But with each separation from the bottom, we were carried away further and further. At first, they did not notice this, they calmly swam enjoying the waves, but when the legs no longer reached the bottom and the speed of the current increased, panic began. We immediately decided to swim to the shore, but noticed that we were not approaching it, but only moving away. At the same time, having sailed towards the shore for about 10 minutes, the forces were already running out, the panic reached its maximum and, having assessed the situation, they realized that it was no longer realistic to swim to the shore.

In this situation, you can already say goodbye to life. They shouted, called for help, but it was too far to the shore, no one heard. And we were carried away further and further. I pushed my wife to the shore with the last of my strength, but we were still carried further and further out to sea. They realized that it was useless to do this, they only lost strength. Imagine how the person feels in this situation. We have already said goodbye to life and it was a shame that we came to rest, and here it is. There were no lifeguards on the shore, only Thais renting scooters, and there were very few people. By chance, someone noticed that we were waving our hands and realized that people were drowning.

A crowd of onlookers gathered and everyone just looked in our direction, no one dared to enter the sea. Of all the vacationers, only one person dared to swim to us, as they later learned from Bulgaria, who risked helping us from imminent death. At the same time, he helped and indicated in which direction to swim. When we were already sailing to the shore, a Thai with a piece of foam also swam in our direction. Slowly, on our last breath and exhausted, we reached the shore. The wife of our savior, who was standing on the shore, was all in tears, she also seemed to be very worried about her husband, who had sailed to us. It’s a pity that they didn’t know his name, they only thanked him for saving him, he didn’t have any strength at all, and for this you should be grateful for life. If they knew about the reverse currents and how to get out of the nickname, this would not have happened. after such an incident, we do not go into the sea with waves at all, even at Russian resorts. By the way, now I began to notice the reverse flow in the Black Sea resort and in the Crimea, even if big waves».

You can watch a video on saving people on the beach. https://youtu.be/W8-EmKkq1Is

There are several simple rules Behaviors to remember and always follow if you are swept out to sea:

1. Don't panic! Everyone knows that panic is the main enemy in extreme situation. However, not everyone continues to remember this when something happens. When a person is subjected to panic, instead of soberly assessing the situation and making the right decision, he relies on his instincts and most often does something completely wrong.

2. Save your energy! No need to fight the current and swim back to the shore is useless. Most likely, you will not have enough strength to overcome the current. Relax and calmly swim not straight to the shore, but to the side, that is, parallel to the coast.

3. Do not swim in the ocean or the sea alone in the presence of waves and in places indicated by red flags! Try to swim on busy beaches, preferably where there is a lifeguard service and people are still present.

The reverse flow is formed on the surface, while there are no funnels and whirlpools. The water in the channel will carry you away from the shore over the surface, but will not drag you to the depth. As a rule, its width does not exceed 50 meters, most often it is 10-20 meters. That is, having swum along the coast quite a bit, you should feel that you have swum out of the canal. The current weakens quickly enough, the channel ends its action where the waves reach a peak and begin to break. The reverse current even differs in color from the rest of the ocean water. This color is given by sand raised by a wave from a coastal shallow, carried out into the ocean. The fact that the sand is visible from above is proved by the fact that the reverse flow is formed only at the surface.

If you see something like the one in the photo, you're in luck, just don't swim in the area. However, 80% of dangerous channels that arise spontaneously do not visually manifest themselves in any way. Professional lifeguards can sometimes identify these places, but tourists are unlikely. On the beaches, in most cases, flags are placed, which can change their position during the day. The color of the flags is accepted all over the world and is easy to remember, but as a rule, little attention is paid to them:

The red and yellow flag means that there are lifeguards on the beach and it is safe to swim between these flags.

The red flag means that swimming in this place is strictly prohibited.

If you have any doubts, throw a bunch of seaweed or a piece of driftwood from the beach to the surface. If there is a reverse current, it will quickly carry your projectile out to sea.

In Thailand, for example, every year there are 1-2 cases of drowning people from the reverse current. It is better to choose a safe vacation spot in Thailand based on the reviews of tourists and choose beaches where there is no reverse flow or is rare, especially when relaxing with children. You can learn more about and its beaches on,,, on the pages of this site and your vacation will be safe.

Popular holiday destinations where reverse currents are often found: in Thailand - in Phuket, the beaches of Coron (even with small waves) and Kata (with rolling waves), in India - on the beaches of Goa.

At Russian resorts during a storm or significant sea waves, the reverse current also occurs: on the Black Sea coast in all resorts Krasnodar Territory, in the Crimea, Abkhazia. But they are much smaller and weaker relative to ocean coast. Even where there are breakwaters, it doesn’t matter when there are big waves, you shouldn’t even go into the water. There are many cases where the reverse flow is on Black Sea coast carried people to the open sea during a storm or large waves. It makes no sense to indicate in which cities and which resorts there were reverse currents, they occur almost everywhere, but we do not always see them.

According to the stories of numerous vacationers, they personally saw reverse currents during a small storm in the cities: Crimea - Evpatoria, Feodosia, on the Black Sea coast - Lazarevskoye, Lermontovo, Divnomorskoye and this does not mean that there are reverse currents there, they can be everywhere . On Russian equipped beaches (at hotels, boarding houses, sanatoriums) during a storm and big waves, the administration always closes them and you can see signs with the words "The beach is closed, the storm." This can often be seen in the Crimea.

There is almost never a reverse flow on the beaches and other islands of Greece, as well as in Cyprus, the resorts of Turkey, in view of the almost always calm sea.

The most common reverse flow is also in resorts, but mainly during a storm or large waves.

On the beaches, reverse flow also occurs in storms and during large waves, but the structure of the coastal bottom of the beaches does not allow swimming in waves, which may be why Vietnam is not famous for reverse flow. But still be careful, reverse current can occur everywhere in the presence of waves.

Drawing a conclusion, it can be argued that the most dangerous beaches with a reverse flow in the presence of waves are: in Thailand - Karon Beach, in India - Goa beaches. Some people may refute this, saying that we often rested there and did not see anything like it. Yes, it’s great that I didn’t have a chance to fall into this dangerous channel. And do not get there, do not, but be careful and watch for red flags on the shore.

If you know what is reflux and how to get out of it, then you will protect yourself and your friends going to beach holiday. Warn them before you travel about this danger and everyone will return safe and sound.. ​

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