Rough waves keep Santa Cruz rescue crews busy

For tourists and all those people lucky enough to have the day off, many found relief from the heat at the beach. But this weekend’s hazardous beach conditions had emergency crews hopping from one beach to the next. And the dangers continued Tuesday on the Central Coast. NewsChannel 5 spoke with Santa Cruz Harbor police who said things have calmed down but over the weekend they received rescue calls all day long.

“When we get these types of calls we’re running to the patrol boat. Seconds count in these we’ve had rescues in the past where if we had shown up just a minute later or two minutes later the person may have drowned,” said Deputy Harbor Master, Blake Anderson.

There were 31 water rescues this Labor Day weekend. No one was seriously hurt, but Anderson said the current water conditions make it harder to rescue people.

“When you are operating your boat near surf you really have to pay attention. There are times when we can’t get in close enough to actually effect the rescues,” said Anderson.

On East Cliff over the weekend, a jet ski rescued six swimmers and State Parks staffed up to help with rescues. They say with Tuesdays heat advisory they’re expecting more people to hit the beach. Some people got in trouble out there. Santa Cruz County Sheriffs posted pictures of Central Fire crews rescuing swimmers who had a hard time staying above water on Tuesday.

“Lifeguard staff made over 10,000 safety contacts through the weekend. And in addition with the higher than normal water temperatures that we have we’re having more park visitors going into the water who might not go into the water and the park visitors are also staying in the water a lot longer time which increases their chances of turning into a possible water rescue,” said State Parks Supervising Lifeguard, Dan Perry.

Scott Cransky and his granddaughter had their own risky encounter with a massive wave earlier.

“A little piece of kelp grabbed me, well it wasn’t so little. grabbed my legs and drug me out but I don’t worry about that kind of stuff,”said Cransky.

Lifeguards said the rip currents are a little different than most. If a swimmer gets swept out by one they’re advised not to try and fight it. Instead let it take you out and wave for help.

“If you see large breaking surf and you don’t have much experience just stay in the water up to your waist don’t go swimming past your ability. If you’re on rocks or rock structures stay away from those, the water can appear calm and then a set can come and the next thing you know you could be getting swept off the rock,” said Anderson.

Safety officials said they will be making there rounds down on the beach letting people know about hazards near shore.