Rip currents claim second life on the Outer Banks

NAGS HEAD, N.C.

A Vermont man is the second rip-current victim believed to have drowned off the Outer Banks coast in less than a week.

Peter Whitworth Howe, 37, of Milton, Vt., was swimming in Kill Devil Hills on Friday when a lifeguard spotted him about 75 yards off shore and suspected Howe might be caught in a rip current.

When the lifeguard reached him, Howe was about 100 yards from the beach, Kill Devil Hills Police Capt. Gene Johnson said.

Howe was given CPR immediately and taken by ambulance to the Outer Banks Hospital. He was pronounced dead shortly afterward, Johnson said.

An autopsy is pending, but Howe's death is likely to be ruled a drowning, Johnson said.

John Wolf, 51, of Woodbine, Md., drowned Aug. 7 off the coast of Ocracoke Island, also the victim of a rip current.

The risk of rip currents - a phenomenon that pulls swimmers away from shore - was high this past weekend, said Evan Stewart, a meteorologist with WVEC-TV.

A high-pressure storm system off the coast of New England made for rough surf along the East Coast over the weekend, Stewart said. By Monday, the rip-current risk had been lowered to moderate, he added, and that's the forecast risk level for the rest of the week.

Swimmers caught in a rip current are advised to swim parallel to shore rather than against the current, which can cause exhaustion.

Erin James, (252) 441-1711, erin.james@pilotonline.com