3 people caught in Florida Panhandle rip current die a day after couple drowned off state’s Atlantic coast

The young men from Alabama had traveled to the Panama City Beach area Friday evening with a group of friends and had just checked into their rental and gone swimming when they found themselves in distress , the Bay County Sheriff’s Office said in an updated Facebook post Saturday. evening.

“All three men were caught in a rip shortly after entering the water,” the post said.

The sheriff’s office received the first emergency call about the swimmers in distress shortly after 8 p.m., officials said. The U.S. Coast Guard and others began rescue operations. The men were found separately and were eventually pronounced dead at area hospitals, authorities said.

The sheriff’s office identified the three as Birmingham, Alabama, residents Harold Denzel Hunter, 25, Jemonda Ray, 24, and Marius Richardson, 24. Earlier this week, single red flags were posted on the beach, indicating a high risk of surfing and ripping. current conditions.

On Thursday, a Pennsylvania couple visiting Florida with their six children drowned after being caught in a rip current while swimming.

Brian Warter, 51, and Erica Wishard, 48, and two of their mostly teenage children were caught in the current on Hutchinson Island along Florida’s southeast coast, said the Martin County Sheriff’s Office in a Facebook post. He added that the two children managed to free themselves from the current and tried to help their parents, but were forced to swim to shore when conditions became too dangerous.

Martin County Ocean Rescue attempted lifesaving measures and took the couple to a local hospital, where they were pronounced dead, according to the sheriff’s office.