I am sure if you have been around the beach long enough you have heard of the term undertow. So what is one? An undertow occurs once a wave stretches inland, underneath the surface of the water it returns to the ocean. Basically it can also be a described as a wave or current underwater that is going out to sea. Undertows can be extremely dangerous and in some areas occur quite often. Depending on the strength of one, a person can get pulled into the undertow and not be able to surface due to its strength and size. Many times islands know what conditions can increase the odds of these happening and send out warnings or post them in order to warn people that they can occur.

Undertows are usually very harmless but it is the rip current that can be dangerous enough to cause someone to drown. Rip currents are similar yet are typically much stronger and much more harmful. So if you hear of beaches having issues with either of these, know that their point is to protect you from strong under currents that can pull you out to sea and possibly keep you underwater for a long period of time.