The 2nd Annual Eena Project Rip Current Awareness Day is scheduled for Wednesday June 25th in Rodanthe. What is the Eena project?
The Eena Project was created to educate others on rip currents and other beach related hazards. In September of 2006, Kristina (Eena) Koles drowned as a result of a rip current on The Outer Banks. She was our daughter, sister, aunt, sister-in-law, and friend. Education is key and we do not want any other families to experience the tragedy we had that day. Please use this site and the links to educate your family.
Two years ago I had some first hand experience with a Rip Current. The weather was awesome, the water was warm and the family was having a great time playing in the surf. There was a guy my age 15 feet away that started to swim in to shore. His strokes started to become more deliberate and he was not making any headway at all. I could see in his eyes that he was starting to panic. I was a lifeguard many years ago, I guess it is similar to a being a Marine (except the shooting part) - once a Marine always a Marine. I first told the guy to swim towards me but he had already started to panic. I swam over to him and pulled him just a few feet to safety. The lifeguard from the beach was sprinting towards us with buoy in hand and escorted him back to the shore. The whole thing took less than a minute. The guy calmed down quickly but you could tell it really shook him up. He and his family packed their bags and headed back to their cottage - they had enough excitement for a day.
One of the quickest ways to have two drownings at once is to have an unexperienced person try to rescue someone in trouble. The person in trouble will do anything in their power to save themselves including holding you under as a float. If you recognize someone in trouble - alert a lifeguard and try to encourage them to swim parallel to the shore. If you find yourself caught in a Rip Current, stay calm and swim parallel to the beach. You may see a magnet in your cottage with instructions on Rip Currents - take a few minutes to review these safety tips with everyone in your house.
If you are interested in sponsoring this event or contributing items, please contact Michelle Koles. The cost of a sponsorship is $500 and it gets your logo on our bags and the t shirts. The bags will be a fabric reuse able tote that are becoming very popular in grocery stores as an eco alternative to plastic bags. In the bags will be items from the Eena Project and the park, but they are looking to fill it with coupons and small items from local businesses. They hope to have 500 bags and give them out for a $1 donation. Please support this worthwhile cause.
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