Coastal communities are back to educating their neighbors about beach safety.
For the first time since the pandemic began, the town of Emerald Isle hosted its beach safety class to help teach its neighbors how to be cautious in the water.
“A lot of people come from all over the country, and they don’t realize just how much water safety plays in their part once they get to the beach,” said Emerald Isle Fire Captain Bruce Norman.
Drownings in North Carolina have been steadily increasing since the National Weather Service began keeping records. In 2014, just one person drowned in the state. At their peak in 2019, 16 people had died in North Carolina waterways. One person in North Carolina has died so far this year in the water.
“There’s not a great difference in the water,” said Norman. “The water has been about the same as it’s always been. We have more visitors now than we’ve had in many years.”