TYBEE ISLAND, Ga. () — It has been a busy Labor Day weekend on Tybee Island and officials are urging caution as wind and waves create hazardous conditions in the water.
Lifeguards warn swimmers to take extra care, signaling swimmers to be aware of strong currents.

Monday, beachgoers observed white capped waves kicked up by strong winds. While beautiful to look at, these large waves could result in dangerous rip currents. Officials urge beachgoers to stay alert amid rough surf. Labor Day marks one of the busiest beach weekends of the year – and also one of the most dangerous.

According to the U.S. Lifesaving Association, rip currents account for more than 80% of beach rescues nationwide, with incidents spiking during holiday weekends. Lifeguards say Monday’s conditions have prompted a red flag warning. Tybee officials tell they may even move to a double red flag, which would limit beachgoers to knee-deep water only.

Jackson Vrisco is the supervisor for Tybee Island Lifeguards. “The flags range from green, yellow to red to double red. Double red means don’t go in past your knees. And so red right now we are just to keeping everyone on alert and making sure they understand how dangerous it is. We’re also monitoring to seeing how many rip [currents] there are to see what we have to do to protect the people, and to see if we should be switching to double red.”

Tybee Island mayor Brian West wants swimmers to know what to do in case they find themselves stuck in a rip current.

“We always advise people that are caught in a rip current to just to relax and let it carry you and then you’ll be able to swim back in after you’re washed out.”

Visitors are encouraged to check beach flag warnings whenever they spend time on the beach and swim near lifeguard towers.