LA County lifeguards rescued 1,950 people from the ocean on Saturday, July 25, and Sunday, July 26, as a punishing heat wave drove millions to beaches across the coast, including Santa Monica.
Nobody died.
The LA County Fire Department's Lifeguard Division posted the numbers on Instagram on Sunday, July 26, along with video of rescues captured by bystanders. Beyond the water saves, lifeguards logged 71,274 preventive actions, 517 medical aids, and 749 emergency vehicle responses across the two-day stretch.
The danger came from two directions at once. Record heat pushed crowds to the shoreline while offshore storms, including remnants of Hurricane Fausto and a Southern Hemisphere swell, churned up powerful rip currents and shorebreak. Water temperatures at Santa Monica Pier hit 76.8°F on Saturday, the highest July reading in available records at the landmark, according to weather tracker Colin McCarthy of US Stormwatch.
The National Weather Service had warned on Saturday, July 25, that "elevated surf with hazardous rip currents will lead to increased ocean rescues," according to a KTLA report that day. The forecast proved accurate within hours.
Lifeguard Division warns hazardous surf will continue this week
A Heat Advisory remains in effect across the Southland through 8 p.m. Monday, July 27, and the Lifeguard Division said a Southern Hemisphere swell is expected to keep surf elevated throughout the week. The National Weather Service forecast slight cooling July 27–29 before heat builds again July 30 into the following weekend.
The Lifeguard Division urged beachgoers to talk to a lifeguard about ocean conditions before entering the water.
What to do in a rip current
Rip currents are narrow channels of fast-moving water that pull swimmers away from shore at speeds up to 8 feet per second. If caught in one, lifeguards advise:
- Do not fight the current.
- Swim parallel to the shoreline until free of the pull.
- Then swim at an angle back toward shore.
- If unable to escape, float or tread water and signal for help.
Santa Monica swimmers face the same hazards this week: the Lifeguard Division expects elevated surf to persist, and the Pier logged its hottest July water temperature on record Saturday. The countywide rescue total covers all LA County beaches, and a Santa Monica-specific breakdown has not been released.
