Since the start of the peak beach season at Oak Island, four people have drowned in the island's picturesque waters. 

Most recently, a 52-year-old man fell victim to a rip current at public beach access near the middle of the island on July 3. 

The tragedy cast a dark cloud over the July Fourth holiday and has inspired changes among the island's first responders looking to educate citizens.

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From July 1 to July 9, some 80,000 cars crossed the Long Beach Road bridge into Oak Island, according to Oak Island Police Chief Charlie Morris. 

In a recent report to Oak Island Town Council, Morris said that amount of traffic was average for the island's peak tourist season, but it was a busy week, nonetheless. During the holiday weekend, Oak Island police responded to 238 calls for service. 

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Much of that traffic was heading to the beach. Brunswick County beaches do not have lifeguards, and instead rely on local first responders to provide rescue services.

This year, the police department, the Oak Island Fire Department and Oak Island Water Rescue have ramped up their efforts to educate tourists and locals alike on one of the risks involved with swimming in the ocean: rip currents.

According to the National Weather Service, rip currents are powerful surges of water that run perpendicular to the beach, pulling water from shore out into open water. If caught in one, it can be a difficult and taxing feat to swim back to shore. 

Using social media and other outreach, the departments are encouraging beach visitors to learn about the hazard conditions on the beach before heading into the water.

Dotted along the island's public beach access points are signs indicating which conditions are reflected in the color-coded flags: green, yellow and red for low, medium and high hazard, respectively. Each sign also contains a QR code that, when scanned, shows visitors a more in-depth look at the current hazard conditions online.

At least half of the island's 2022 drownings happened on "yellow flag" days, which indicate medium surf conditions. According to Oak Island Water Rescue, rip currents are present even on low-risk days — though they're likely less frequent and weaker than higher-risk days.

Morris said emergency responders are working to monitor ocean conditions and updating the flags to reflect current conditions, as risk could change through the day.

On July 1, the town launched a new public notification system, “OKInformation.” The system allows the town to send out email and text notifications to those that enroll, informing them of beach conditions and other town news. 

Recent increases in island traffic and tourism have prompted some changes to its newly established Beach Services Unit, Morris said. The Beach Services Unit is a civilian-staffed branch of the Oak Island Police Department. The unit’s employees work to patrol the beach, enforce parking, and operate drones from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily during the island’s peak beach season of May 13 to Sept. 5.

Now, the beach service patrol utility terrain vehicles are equipped with first aid kits and fly warning flags indicating current weather conditions, and some staff will soon undergo CPR training.

Ahead of the July 4 holiday weekend, the town installed new signage to remind beachgoers to keep emergency access locations clear in case emergency response is needed.

At the town council’s July 12 meeting, council member John Bach suggested the town consider adding warning signs at each public access, encouraging beachgoers to use caution and consider the current conditions before entering the water.

“It’s not about aesthetics, it’s about saving lives,” Bach said.

Bach said he thinks tourists would be more likely to take notice of a warning sign, rather than take the several steps to go online and check the current conditions or educate themselves on the meaning of the beach warning flags.

“I’m telling you we need a sign, because parents and visitors are busy, they’re carrying things, they’re not paying attention,” Bach said.

The council is set to continue discussing the addition of warning signs at its August meeting.

According to the National Weather Service, there have been 171 rip current deaths in the Carolinas since 2000. Of the decedents, 80% resided in inland areas.

On June 14, Morris said, officials responded to the beach and found a 67-year-old woman who had drowned. According to the National Weather Service, she had been caught in a rip current. She was from Knoxville, Tennessee.

Despite life-saving measures, the woman died.

“The primary reason visitors and vacationers are the ones drowning in rip currents is that they do not know what to do,” Oak Island Water Rescue said. “They aren’t aware of the danger and don’t understand rip currents. They can’t recognize them, and they don’t know the survival strategies of swimming sideways or floating to survive. It’s unrealistic to expect everyone vacationing at the beach to understand rip currents.”

According to the National Weather Service, rip currents can be spotted by locating the areas between breaking waves where water is flowing toward the ocean, rather than toward the shoreline. If caught in a rip current, the easiest way to escape is to swim parallel to the shoreline. 

Oak Island Water Rescue suggests bringing a boogie board or U.S. Coast Guard-approved float cushion to the beach, as they could be helpful in the event a rescue is needed. Wearing a lifejacket can help an individual float if caught in a rip current, Oak Island Water Rescue said. 

Jamey Cross is the public safety reporter at the StarNews. Reach her at jbcross@gannett.com or message her on Twitter @jameybcross.