Today’s guest columnist is Jennifer L. Greer.
I was vacationing on the Gulf of Mexico last month when three young men, in their 20s, drowned in a rip current within hours of arriving in Panama City Beach, Fla.
They were from my adopted hometown, Birmingham, Ala. It was painful to hear the tearful sister of one young man describe how she longed for one last brotherly hug. She told a TV reporter: “I wish we had done more research (about the currents) before we went.”
Equally shocking was the unprovoked shark attack at Seacrest Beach, Fla., last month on two teenage girls from Mountain Brook, a suburb of Birmingham. As I read an account of one teen’s life-threatening injuries, I was struck by the innocence of their activity – hunting for sand dollars in waist-deep water.
The mother says her daughter has made heroic progress, and the community here has rallied around both girls with an outpouring of concern and a showing of purple ribbons. Suddenly, these tragic vacation outcomes seem personal.
Maybe that’s because the Birmingham region has a unique relationship with Panhandle beach towns.
Birmingham’s special relationship with beaches
This closeness began when coastal communities were developed after World War II, according to Alabama historian Harvey H. Jackson III. Of Laguna Beach, for example, “So many of [Alabama’s] largest city owned cottages or vacationed there that one enterprising barkeeper named his establishment the Little B’ham,” wrote Jackson, whose grandmother bought a lot at the coast in 1954. “Scores of Alabamians, me included, remember the Little B’ham fondly.”
Visionary developer and proponent of new urbanism Robert Davis, who grew up in Birmingham’s Edgewood neighborhood, also vacationed as a child at the Gulf coast. He inherited pristine beach property — and dreams of building on it — from his grandfather, J.S. Smolian of Birmingham’s beloved Pizitz department stores.
In 1981, Davis and his wife, Daryl, pioneered construction of the now iconic Seaside, transforming scrub Florida coastline into an award-winning walkable, shoppable, swimmable community with homes sympathetic to the history and environment of the coast along Scenic Highway 30-A.
Finally, it is no accident that the lush magazine, Coastal Living, originated not in any coastal city, but in Birmingham, where the travel and lifestyle folks at Southern Living know how to celebrate the best of the beach.
A half-day’s drive from Alabama’s largest metropolitan area, the Gulf remains a font of memories and a great escape for many of us — our favorite fishing spot, family reunion choice, spring break, or summer beach trip.
How, then, can things go so horribly wrong? I found myself worrying and reading about rip currents, double red flags, how to avoid shark attacks (purple flags), and then, when the heat wave hit, learning what high temperatures and humidity do to the human body at an index of 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
My husband, still on vacation, tried to ignore me, but he agreed when I said: “It’s time for Birminghamians to rethink our relationship with the Gulf of Mexico.”
The Gulf is a wild place
Here’s a simple but profound idea: What if the Gulf is a wild place, instead of our beach playground? If so, can we be more nature-aware and enjoy our vacations in new and different ways? Science shows we cannot make our beach trips risk-free, but there are ways we can prepare for the unpredictability of the wild.
Here are three:
- Check for rip current warnings daily, like you do the weather
The National Weather Service (NWS) in Tallahassee and Mobile/Pensacola posts rip current warnings – with a map of the affected coastline – in advance and regularly updates them. This service allows you to plan your swim schedule. Understand what a rip current is, because it can carry even strong swimmers out to sea. Learn the flag system. Note: Some small towns and public beaches do not have lifeguards and flag warning systems. You must take the initiative to check with the NWS online to see if the beach is under a rip current warning.
2. Plan ahead for non-ocean swimming days
Prepare the family in advance for the idea that you may spend a day or two at the beach and not be able to swim due to rip current, wildlife, or heat warnings. This can be hard to do at the last minute if the weather is sunny and beautiful! But we saw families adapt, bringing corn hole tosses, footballs, softballs, other toys and picnics to enjoy sunning, wading, and bird watching. Lodge close to pools as well as bays (usually calmer and swimmable) and lakes for kayaking/canoeing. Research water parks, boat trips, and nature centers for backup.
3. Learn more about coastal wildlife
From yellow flies, snakes, and alligators to stingrays, jellyfish and sharks, the Gulf is home to wild animals. Shark attacks remain very rare, NOAA Fisheries scientists say. They offer these precautions: Avoid : a) swimming where others are fishing with live bait; b) swimming where bait fish are schooling; c) swimming alone; d) and swimming in deep cuts or channels between sandbars, where sharks move around. Shuffle your feet to warn stingrays. Beware of alligators in near-shore ponds.
If, despite your best-laid plans, the Gulf totally conspires against you with something like a hurricane, don’t panic. You can always head to the Birmingham region’s closest beaches – the sandy shores of two freshwater lakes at Oak Mountain State Park.
Oh, did I mention there are bears in the park?
Jennifer L. Greer is a freelance journalist and a retired university instructor who lives in the Birmingham, AL. area.
David Sher is the founder and publisher of ComebackTown. He’s past Chairman of the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce (BBA), Operation New Birmingham (REV Birmingham), and the City Action Partnership (CAP).
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Invite David to speak for free to your group about how we can have a more prosperous metro Birmingham. dsher@comebacktown.com.
Very informative and educational indeed.
Thanks for sharing. I have visited Orange Beach a few times and do practice these safety tips first!
Very informative and educational indeed.
Thanks for sharing. I have visited Orange Beach a few times and do practice these safety tips first!
Again, thanks for writing this wonderful article.
Sounds like a Democrat to me. Lady, if you’re too scared to go to the Gulf then don’t go. Time to rethink going to the Gulf? Tell that to the millions of visitors that go to the Gulf every year and see how they react. Things happen. We all take our chances with fate every time we step outside. It may be time for YOU to rethink going to the Gulf, which is your right to do, but you don’t tell everyone else what to do out of your own fear and a desire to control others.
John Scott, so what does offering some good saftey advice have to do with politics?? I grew up on the Georgia coast and as youngsters we learned our saftey lessesons – especially rip currents.
You will probably find that many of these tragic events affect folks who visit the coast once or twice a year. These tips can save lives
She said, and I quote: “It’s time for Birminghamians to rethink our relationship with the Gulf of Mexico.” So, after a couple of undeniably tragic events the author decides to take upon herself the authority of hall monitor scold and issue her queenly edict that SHE simply must tell all Birminghamians that they must listen to her and reconsider their motives for vacationing at the Gulf. She even admits that her husband tried to ignore her but eventually he came around and “agreed” with her. Yeah. Sure he did.
Yes, these tragic events do indeed affect folks who visit the coast and yes, tips do save lives. No “probably” about it. Unfortunately the author was using her “good tips and advice” column as an excuse to mask her real reason for writing which is to admonish others for doing something that she has decided that they shouldn’t do because, well, just because she says so. Ever hear of the term “chutzpah”? I think it’s pretty applicable here.
As far as politics are concerned, my reference to Democrats was meant to be a joke but not really since what Democrats and Liberals do best these days is to tell everyone else what to do since they are obviously so superior to the rest of us. Ms. Greer may not have meant to come across in the manner that she did but then again, maybe she did. It sure does appear that way to me.
John, I didn’t interpret as political. Ms. Greer wrote about Oak Mountain State Park, “Oh, did I mention there are bears in the park?” I feel her intent was to convey information on how people can be safe at the beach. Her approach was creatively to make the column interesting rather than just present a list of do’s and don’ts.
Hello David. I didn’t interpret her column as political either. I interpreted it as an exercise in narcissism as she projected her personal decision onto anyone else who has vacationed or will vacation at the Gulf at some point in time, using helpful hints and suggestions as a cover for her real intentions that, in fairness, may be at such a subconscious level that even she does not recognize them. And, as I mentioned, the political part of my response was in part tongue in cheek. In my experience, and I have a lot of it, Liberal Democrats are much more likely to helicopter parent the behaviors of others than common sense Conservatives and that is why I stated at the very beginning of my response that her column that I had just read sounded like a Democrat to me. Now, I have no empirical evidence to support that theory other than my own personal experience and the observations of others but, as we have often heard, perception is everything.
As far as the bears at Oak Mountain comment is concerned, that was just a cute way to end a column. Ms. Greer is a writer, a good one in my opinion, and as a writer she knows all about how to use such a conceit to her advantage. I very seriously doubt that anyone reading her column was shocked by the revelation that there are bears at Oak Mountain. 😉
Heads up, beach fans. Panama City Beach is now issuing $500 fines for swimming on double red flags — and with no warning. That’s another reason to check for risky swimming alerts and plan accordingly.
https://www.mypanhandle.com/news/local-news/bay-county/panama-city-beach/panama-city-beach-implements-strict-double-red-flag-policy-to-improve-water-safety/
Here is one more development to make Gulf beaches safer for our community, thanks to Alabama Senator Katie Britt.
https://www.al.com/news/2024/07/katie-britt-backs-shark-attack-alert-law-in-honor-of-mountain-brook-teen-lulu-gribbin.html