HUTCHINSON ISLAND, Fla. – A Pennsylvania couple who were vacationing in Florida with their six children drowned after being caught in a return current while swimming, authorities said.
Brian Warter, 51, and Erica Wishard, 48, and two of their children, mostly teenagers, were caught in the current on Hutchinson Island, off the southeast coast of Florida, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. post on Facebook.
“The children managed to break the chain and tried to help their parents, but it became too dangerous and they were forced to swim to shore,” investigators said.
Martin County Ocean Rescue attempted life-saving measures and took the couple to a local hospital, where they were pronounced dead, according to the sheriff’s office.
A crisis intervention deputy is helping the children while other family members travel to meet them in Florida. The sheriff’s office did not say where the family was from in Pennsylvania.
A rip current is a fast-moving column of water that flows from the coast toward the open sea. Authorities say swimmers caught should remain calm and then swim parallel to shore to escape the current.
Fire Rescue officials said there were red flags on the beach Thursday, indicating the possibility of dangerous surf conditions. O National Weather Service Melbourne Office warned on its website Friday of a “high risk” of rip currents along the entire Atlantic coast, in part due to larger ocean waves caused by a low-pressure system near the Florida-Georgia state line. , said meteorologist Megan Tollefsen.
“A lot of people are local, they understand the tides. They know what to do and what not to do,” Martin County Chief Deputy John Budensiek told WPTV. “They know where to go into the ocean and where not to go. We receive these vacationers who arrive and, unfortunately, this ends badly for them. There is no way to get the message across to all of them.”
Hutchinson Island is about 55 miles north of West Palm Beach.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
