It's The Ocean, Not A Swimming Pool

The ocean is a vast wilderness, home to thousands of awesome and wonderful wild creatures, and when you visit the beach this summer, you are a guest in their environment. Like swimming in a swimming pool, you need to be aware of potential dangers and some precautions to ensure your safety.

Just like in a swimming pool, the biggest danger to humans who swim in the ocean is the potential for drowning. Many of the same precautions you should take to prevent drowning in a swimming pool also apply to swimming in the ocean. However, the ocean is wild, and other potential dangers exist there -- like getting caught in a riptide, getting knocked over by a large wave, getting stung by a jellyfish, cutting a foot on a shell, or getting bitten by a shark -- that do not exist in a swimming pool.

The majority of ocean creatures are harmless to people, but some animals can and occasionally do injure humans. Usually, when an ocean animal hurts a human, it is a defense behavior -- like the jellyfish that stings or the crab that pinches -- because the animal perceives the human as a threat.

When a shark bites a human, it is usually mistaken identity -- the shark thinks the human is a fish and takes a bite expecting to have dinner. When the shark realizes that the person is not a tasty fish, it lets go and swims away. This is why most shark "attacks" are hit-and-run incidents and often only result in cuts and bruises, which may require stitches but are not considered serious injuries. But this is not always the case. Sometimes shark bites can cause serious injuries and can rarely even be fatal. There are precautions you can take to reduce your risk of encountering a shark and reducing your risk of a shark attack. NOAA Fisheries encourages all beachgoers to "swim smart."

Remember that when you swim in the ocean you are a guest in a wild habitat and you should respect that habitat and its creatures, much like you would if you were camping at Glacier National Park where wild grizzly bears live. And just like putting on sunscreen when swimming in a swimming pool and storing food wisely when camping in grizzly bear territory, taking precautions to ensure your health and safety in the ocean is the best way to enjoy your summer beach vacation.

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