Strong rip currents and building surf are creating hazards for swimmers while delivering epic waves for local surfers.
SAN DIEGO — Strong rip currents are keeping San Diego lifeguards busy once again as a growing swell linked to Hurricane Genevieve creates increasingly dangerous ocean conditions for swimmers.
The combination of hot, humid weather and ocean temperatures in the mid-70s has drawn more people to local beaches in recent days. At the same time, energy from Hurricane Genevieve is reaching the Southern California coastline, causing surf and currents to intensify.
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For many swimmers, trouble can develop quickly. One beachgoer told CBS 8 it took them ten seconds to be caught in a rip current. Fortunately, lifeguards quickly spotted him and pulled him to safety.
Another swimmer said they did not realize they were in danger until lifeguards stepped in.
“The lifeguards came out and kind of let you know, and then it suddenly dawns on you,” the swimmer said.
Not everyone entering the water was caught off guard. Clark Farson intentionally explored the rip current, but only after preparing with fins and studying its behavior.
“You don’t come down here without fins,” Farson said.
He explained that the current was behaving differently than usual.
“Normally the rip is here, goes straight out, but today it’s really sucking down the beach so anybody who goes in the water here just got swept away,” Farson said. “It was powerful.”
While the conditions have created extra work for lifeguards, who are fully staffed for the summer season, the growing swell has surfers excited.
We spotted CBS 8 Meteorologist Shawn Styles at Windansea, which he says is one of several spots expected to take advantage of the incoming south swell.
“Windansea, La Jolla reefs, they bend out just enough to catch that south swell that rolls into San Diego,” he said.
Forecasters and surfers expect the swell to continue building over the coming days, with wave heights reaching around six feet and larger sets approaching ten feet or more.
For surfers, the event is shaping up to be a memorable stretch of summer surf.
“This is really a classic hurricane swell that’s coming into Southern California,” Styles said. “This entire six weeks of surf that we’ve seen in San Diego is almost unheard of. In my 50-plus years of surfing, I really can’t remember a stretch of surf so good in the summer.”
Lifeguards continue urging beachgoers to use caution, swim near staffed towers and remain aware of changing ocean conditions as the surf and rip currents strengthen.
WATCH RELATED: Hurricane Genevieve sends dangerous swells to San Diego Coast
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