After multiple incidents on waterways in Erie and Crawford counties where rescue crews were called out to save those who are in the water, some might need a reminder of safe water practices.
Erie News Now has captured video of flooding, storm damage and swollen waterways. All of the rain we've seen in the past few weeks has caused our rivers, streams and creeks to become unpredictable and dangerous for swimmers to go into. Donald Sauer works for the City of Erie Fire Department and also aids in water rescues as well. He explains it isn't uncommon for all this rain to cause our waterways to swell.
"You never know when a river is going to start to become out of hand because of the amount of water coming down it," says Sauer.
Sauer says a river might look normal and safe when you first go in. But that can change quickly with the amount of rain we've seen in the last few weeks.
"You can look at a river and it's not moving very fast and in a short amount of time it can become overwhelming," says Sauer.
Sauer recommends if you chose to go swimming, to double check for some tell tail signs it might be too dangerous.
"If there are white caps or white rapids going down the creek or the stream, I wouldn't go in it. All of the creeks and rivers around here are going to eventually going to start rushing more into it with all of the water rushing into it and they do on a nice calm not rainy day," says Sauer.
It always feels good to take a swim when it's a hot summer day. But after all of the storms we've seen in the recent weeks, here in Erie we're above average for the amount of rainfall we normally see in July. Sauer urges everyone, no matter how experienced of a swimmer to remember one thing.
"A life jacket, even if you're an experienced swimmer. You always want to go in the water with another person so if you need help you can help them they can help you," says Sauer.
It's not just swimmers. Its boaters, jet skiers and kayakers too that can be affected by these rising water levels. For kayakers especially, if you're choosing to go down a waterway that may look rougher you should consider your safety as a number one priority.
Make sure you're wearing a helmet, because if you fall out of your kayak and going down the river you can easily hit a rock. And if you get knocked out, your situation is going to be a lot worse," says Sauer.