ANNA MARIA – In response to rip current-related water rescues in the waters off Bean Point on Aug. 9 and Aug. 12, Mayor Mark Short proposed creating a no swim zone at the northern tip of Anna Maria Island during the Aug. 14 city commission meeting.
Earlier in the meeting, Short praised Sgt. Brett Getman and Manatee County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) deputies Vince Bowman, Matt Daugherty and Nate Boggs for their roles in rescuing four swimmers who found themselves caught in the rip currents while swimming at Bean Point.
On Aug. 9, Getman entered the water, threw a life ring to a 15-year-old boy who got caught in the rip current and helped pull him ashore while Bowman stood on shore relaying information to the dispatcher according to MCSO protocol while the Manatee County Beach Patrol and the MCSO Marine Unit rescued the boy’s 45-year-old father, who appeared to suffer cardiac arrest after being placed on a rescue board. The father was transferred by boat to the nearby Galati Yacht Sales marina and EMS then transported him to a local hospital where he died the following day, according to Getman.
Later that afternoon, a 73-year-old man drowned near the Sandbar restaurant, south of Bean Point, but his death is not believed to be rip current-related.
On Aug. 12, Daugherty entered the water off Bean Point and helped rescue another father and son in a similar manner while Boggs relayed critical information to dispatch.
“I just wanted to commend them for their acts of heroism,” Short said, with Getman and Lt. John Wren in attendance.
Short said Getman, Bowman, Daugherty and Boggs are being nominated to receive MCSO Life Saving Awards for their rescue efforts.
‘No Swim’ zone
When proposing the Bean Point no swim zone, Short said local residents know it’s not safe to swim at Bean Point but visitors don’t.
“It’s a great place to walk. It’s a great place to enjoy the view. You just don’t go swimming there because of the currents. Unfortunately, our visitors don’t know that,” Short said, noting all four swimmers recently rescued at Bean Point were visitors.
“We constantly have these types of issues come up and it’s always someone who’s here visiting who just doesn’t know any better,” Short said.
“I’d like the commission to entertain the idea of putting up a no swim zone up at Bean Point so we make it perfectly clear to visitors that this is not an area you want to swim in,” he said.
Even though every designated beach access point has a sign that cautions beachgoers about rip currents, Short thinks the city should take it a step further and create a no swim zone that begins at Fern Street and extends around the northern tip of Bean Point.
“It’s clearly a safety issue,” he said when requesting future commission discussion at the commission’s next meeting on Thursday, Aug. 28.
None of the commissioners commented on Short’s proposal, but Sgt. Getman addressed the risks he and his deputies face during Bean Point water rescues.
“It’s also dangerous for us to go in the water and get these people out. Please keep that in mind,” Getman told the commission.
