Good weather, riptides keep lifeguards busy

Temperatures in the low 70s and unintimidating waves resulted in at

least 20 lifeguard rescues by early afternoon Saturday.

About 60,000 people hit the beach between West Newport and Balboa

Boulevard on Saturday afternoon, Newport Beach Lifeguard Lt. Dave Wenger

estimated.

While small waves of about 4 to 6 feet made the water appear

relatively safe, strong riptides made the surf more treacherous than it

appeared, dragging many swimmers farther out than they intended to go.

“People who aren’t as water oriented get in the currents, then they

get scared and can panic, which causes them to become exhausted,” Wenger

said. “We try to prevent that panic.”

On Saturday afternoon, 16 lifeguards were on duty in towers, while

those in land vehicles and boats brought the total number of lifeguards

in the area to 23.