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North Carolina Coastal Town Adds Safety Measures To Warn About Rip Currents

Waves from Hurricane Florence pound the Bogue Inlet Pier in Emerald Isle N.C., Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018. (AP Photo/Tom Copeland)

A North Carolina beach town will use a new system to warn swimmers about dangerous rip currents. This comes after three people died off of Emerald Isle's coast this spring.

Rip currents are powerful, narrow channels of fast moving water prevalent along the East Coast.

Emerald Isle has been using a single red flag to keep beachgoers out of the water when they occur. Now the town is switching to double red flags to warn swimmers about an extreme high risk of rip currents.

According to the News & Observer, those who don't listen to the warnings could face arrest or a $100 fine. The new system has been in the works for a while, and supporters say it's timely. Last month, two teenagers from Wake Forest High School died after they were caught in a rip current near Emerald Isle.

Nearly two weeks later, a Marine drowned while swimming in waters off the town's coast.

The new flag warning system will go into effect this year.

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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