Hurricane Arthur is expected to kick up rip currents along East Coast

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Surfers take advantage of waves spawned by Hurricane Arthur on Friday off Avalon, N.C. (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

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Waves pushed ashore by Hurricane Arthur buckled a section of Highway 12 on Hatteras Island, N.C. (North Carolina Department of Transportation / Associated Press)

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Sailboats that broke free of their moorings because of the winds and waves from Hurricane Arthur, rest on the shore of Carrot Island in Beaufort, N.C. (Randall Hill / Associated Press)

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Pyrotechnicians Bryan Jackson, left, and Steve Neer check for water damage to fireworks barrels for Friday night’s show at the Nags Head Fishing Pier. (Hyunsoo Leo Kim / Associated Press)

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Power company trucks skirt encroaching waves driven by Hurricane Arthur along Highway 64 in Nags Head, N.C. (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

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Katie Bender gets some assistance emptying her boot from Johanna Bender, left, on a flooded street in Manteo, N.C., after Hurricane Arthur passed. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)

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A couple walk along a flooded street near the waterfront in Manteo, N.C. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)

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A law enforcement officer watches as a pickup truck crosses a flooded stretch of road in Kill Devil Hills, N.C., after Hurricane Arthur began moving offshore and away from North Carolina’s Outer Banks early Friday. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)

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Rising water surrounds a car advertising a seafood restaurant in Nags Head, N.C., as Hurricane Arthur passes through the area. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)

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Vehicles navigate a flooded Highway 64 as Hurricane Arthur pushes water over the road in Nags Head, N.C. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)

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An intersection in North Myrtle Beach is flooded as Hurricane Arthur heads toward North Carolina’s Outer Banks. (Janet Blackmon Morgan / McClatchy-Tribune)

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Hurricane Arthur can be seen from the International Space Station as it moves up the East Coast of the United States. (NASA / Getty Images)

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Lifeguards and firefighters set down a lifeguard stand at Atlantic Beach, N.C., as Hurricane Arthur approaches. (Chris Seward / Associated Press)

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Peter LeWando puts plywood sheets over the windows of his apartment in Avon, N.C. (Steve Earley / Associated Press)

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A steady stream of traffic, mostly vacationers, heads north on NC 12, the main road on Hatteras Island, N.C. Residents were ordered to evacuate the island in advance of Hurricane Arthur. (Steve Earley / Associated Press)

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A sign warns tourists and residents headed to Emerald Isle, N.C., about Hurricane Arthur’s approach. (John Sudbrink / Associated Press)

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Surfers walk the beach as Hurricane Arthur churns at Wrightsville Beach, N.C. (Mike Spencer / Associated Press)

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Mike Stanley, owner of Bougue Inlet Fishing Pier in Emerald Isle, N.C., installs hurricane shutters on the windows of his rental properties before the arrival of Hurricane Arthur. (John Sudbrink / Associated Press)

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A sign above the Thomas Rhodes Bridge in Wilmington, N.C., alerts motorists as residents along the coast brace for the approach of Hurricane Arthur. (Ken Blevins / Associated Press)

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A car loaded with bikes, kayaks and surfboards leaves Hatteras Island, N.C., at dawn on Thursday. The island is under a mandatory evacuation order because of approaching Hurricane Arthur. (Steve Earley / Associated Press)

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The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse shines on Hatteras Island, N.C., before dawn on Thursday. (Steve Earley / Associated Press)

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Residents and visitors leave Hatteras Island, N.C., heeding a mandatory evacuation warning due to the approaching storm. (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

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Clouds and rain move in as a beachgoer walks along the shore at Carolina Beach, N.C., early Thursday. (Mike Spencer / Associated Press)

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Families pack up their camping gear before complying with mandatory evacuation orders in Rodanthe, N.C., on Hatteras Island. (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

By Maya Srikrishnan

July 3, 2014 1:26 PM PT

Unlike violent, crashing waves, you probably won’t notice a rip current until you’re right in the middle of one.

Fourth of July beachgoers on the East Coast will need to take extra precautions to avoid these strong, narrow currents, courtesy of Hurricane Arthur, according to the National Weather Service and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Rip currents are channeled currents of water flowing away from shore, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). They typically form at low spots or breaks in sandbars. The pull of rip currents varies — smaller ones may extend just beyond the line of breaking waves, but the more powerful ones can carry a swimmer hundreds or yards offshore, NOAA says.

“This is the first hurricane of the season so everybody needs to really careful,” Charles McLeod, a Coast Guard spokesman, told the Los Angeles Times. “People don’t need to be on the shore. They need to be further inland with their TV.”

Arthur developed from a tropical storm into a Category 1 hurricane Thursday morning, with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph. The storm is not expected to make landfall til early Friday, but the weather service warned of heavy rains, coastal flooding, high winds and a storm surge of 2 feet to 4 feet.

McLeod said the Coast Guard expected the waters off the Carolinas north to Virginia Beach, Va., to be especially dangerous.

Steve Pfaff, warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service in North Carolina, said Arthur was expected to leave rough waters and rip currents in its path Friday, although the water should calm by the weekend.

Pfaff said a rip current was like a treadmill in the water. The danger is getting tired from fighting it and getting pulled under.

“When the water is rough, we don’t even advise getting in the water — you could get a spinal injury,” he said.

For those who are going to the shore, there are several things you should do Friday to keep safe, Pfaff said:

—Check the weather before heading to the beach.
—Never swim alone.
—Before getting in the water ask the lifeguard to point out rip currents, if there are any.
—Stay calm and don’t fight the current if you get caught in one.
—Escape the current by swimming parallel to the shoreline. When you’re free of the current, swim toward shore.
—If you’re too tired to swim, float or tread water until the current weakens, then swim to shore.

Follow @msrikris for the latest national news.

Hurricane Arthur is expected to kick up rip currents along East Coast

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