{"id":28782,"date":"2024-05-08T12:04:15","date_gmt":"2024-05-08T16:04:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/?p=28782"},"modified":"2026-04-24T15:29:36","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T19:29:36","slug":"iisg-adds-new-water-safety-videos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/iisg-adds-new-water-safety-videos\/","title":{"rendered":"IISG Adds New Water Safety Videos"},"content":{"rendered":"

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG) has recently added to its YouTube Channel<\/a> new water safety videos, which share what to watch for and how to stay out of those scary situations that can become dangerous very quickly.<\/p>\n

Water Safety Basics<\/a>: Water safety is more then just knowing how to swim. You need to what can cause hazards, what type of water bodies have hazards and how to avoid or survive those hazards.<\/p>\n

Water Safety – What to Know Before You Go to the Beach<\/a>: On average every year, 87 people die in the Great Lakes, half of them are in Lake Michigan. Ocean waves are very different from Great Lake waves.<\/p>\n

Water Safety – Winter Beach Hazards<\/a>: Water safety is so important during the winter. When covered in snow and ice, it’s difficult to tell where the beach ends and the lake begins. Shelf ice is beautiful but dangerous. There are many places where it cannot support a person\u2019s weight, which may cause a fall into freezing water below, so you should never walk on shelf ice.<\/p>\n

Water Safety – How to Escape Dangerous Currents<\/a>: Of the five Great Lakes, Lake Michigan has the highest number of drownings and rescues each year. Lake Michigan is freshwater. This is so different from an ocean. It doesn’t have the salt, so it is lacking that buoyancy already. If waves get super high and rip currents start to form and that water gets volatile, it is going to be much harder to get out of the situation if you start struggling while you are swimming.<\/p>\n

Water Safety – Southern Lake Michigan<\/a>: Lake Michigan has also had more than 250 recorded cases of swimmers caught in rip currents since 2002, which is double the combined total of the other four Great Lakes. Make sure you check the forecast before you come and have a safety plan. In the ocean you can get hit by two waves in 15 seconds but in the Great Lakes you could get his with five waves in that same time period. Learn more about high frequency waves and how dangerous it can be.<\/p>\n

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant<\/a> combines research, education, and outreach to empower southern Lake Michigan communities to secure a healthy environment and economy. The program is funded through\u00a0National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration<\/a>\u00a0(NOAA) via the\u00a0National Sea Grant College Program<\/a>, as well as the\u00a0University of Illinois<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Purdue University<\/a>. IISG also works in partnerships with key organizations, institutions, and agencies in the region to reach more audiences and multiply opportunities for success. IISG brings together scientists, educators, policy makers, community decision makers, outreach specialists, business leaders, and the general public to work towards a healthy environment and economy.<\/p>\n