Even without rain, Hurricane Erin poses risks to Myrtle Beach area swimmers
As Hurricane Erin passes through the region next week, forecasters expect the storm system to present life-threatening conditions and increase risks for Mrytle Beach-area swimmers.
Hurricane Erin was downgraded on Sunday to a Category 3 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center. It is on track to pass by the Grand Strand and the Mrytle Beach area with no weather impacts, according to the National Weather Service.
However, that doesn’t mean the area will be left completely unscathed, forecasters said. The storm system is expected to create hazardous ocean conditions such as strong swell — longer-period waves — and rip currents.
This summer alone, the Myrtle Beach area has witnessed at least three ocean drownings, not including a 21-year-old ocean swimmer missing from North Myrtle Beach since July.
While not all of these drownings were attributed to rip currents, such currents are recognized as the third-highest cause of direct U.S. fatalities from tropical cyclones, such as Erin, according to the weather service.
From 2010 through June 16, 2025, the weather service confirmed 17 drownings in Horry County due to rip currents, The Sun News previously reported.
Hurricane Erin should pass by the Myrtle Beach area hundreds of miles from shore, weather service meteorologist Mark Bacon said. However it will cause significant swell, rip currents and larger waves than the area is accustomed to, Bacon added.
The swell will start being observed in the area at the beginning of the week. The longer-period waves seen during storm swell have a tendency of “piling up” water on the beaches, Bacon explained. When the water pulls back out to sea, that piling effect makes it do so with more intensity than usual, forming strong rip currents.
Rip currents like these can pull swimmers far away from shore, leading to exhaustion and possibly drowning.
By mid-week, Bacon said the waves will get shorter in period, but taller in height. Wave height is expected to peak on Wednesday, when Erin will make its closest pass to the Grand Strand.
The ocean floor near the Grand Strand is relatively shallow, meaning that waves will likely only reach a maximum of six to seven feet high, Bacon said.
The dangerous effects of the hurricane in the ocean will “slowly diminish” through next weekend, Bacon said, but in the meantime, red flags and even double red flags may be a fixture at area beaches.
Surviving a rip current
Rip currents do not cause drownings by pulling victims under the waves. Rather, they pull swimmers far away from shore, which can lead to panicking or exhaustion that is ultimately fatal, The Sun News previously reported.
Rip currents move at average speeds of one to two feet per second, but have been measured at speeds as fast as eight feet per second, which is faster than an Olympic swimmer, the weather service says. It is advised not to swim against a rip current, which will only drain a swimmer of their energy. Instead, swimmers should relax as best they can, and wave for help if needed.
The best way to escape a rip current isn’t to fight against it, but to move out of it by swimming parallel to the shore, according to the weather service.
The weather service also advises that swimmers remain close to lifeguards, and if they are ever unsure of their safety in present ocean conditions, don’t go out for a swim.
If beachgoers see a single red flag posted at their nearby lifeguard stand, this means that hazardous ocean conditions are present. If two red flags are posted, this means the beach is closed to the public for swimming.
This story was originally published August 17, 2025 at 1:47 PM.
