Love The Beach, Respect The Ocean Ambassador Program

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Aerial image of the beach during the summer.

Learn more about becoming a Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean Ambassador!

Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean is an award-winning public outreach campaign that focuses on reducing the number of lives lost each year and protecting the lives of Outer Banks beachgoers by bringing awareness to an array of potentially life-threatening beach and ocean hazards, such as rip currents, severe weather, extreme heat, offshore wind, shorebreak, holes in the sand and encounters with marine wildlife.

The National Weather Service ranks rip currents as the third leading cause of weather-related fatalities nationwide—and the number one leading cause of weather-related fatalities in North Carolina. Our coastal community on the Outer Banks of North Carolina hosts millions of beachgoers from places far and wide where ocean hazards—particularly rip currents—are often given little to no thought. As a result, beachgoers who are unaware of the dangers posed by such hazards often treat ocean swimming the same way they would when swimming in a pool, lake or river, which leads to many lives being lost to the power of the Atlantic.

Launched in 2018, the Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean campaign is a collaborative effort that brings together a diverse group of local entities, including Dare County Emergency Management, municipalities, ocean rescue agencies, as well as the National Park Service and numerous nonprofit organizations and business partners. Learn more by clicking the tabs below to find additional information.

Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean Workgroup:

To prevent tragedies from occurring and reduce the the number of lives lost, Dare County Emergency Management leads a workgroup—which is comprised of officials from our six towns, as well as local ocean rescue agencies, the National Weather Service, National Park Service, Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, Currituck Visitors Bureau and Dare County Public Relations—to deliver a community-based effort to mitigate beach and ocean hazards. This effort is the Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean campaign.

Campaign Mission:

The mission of the campaign is to inform, but not scare, beach goers of the hazards that exist before they head over the dune to enjoy a day at the beach. Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean goes beyond rip currents working to ensure beach goers understand all hazards, from lightning and heat, to shore break, marine life, and the perils of sand collapse when digging a hole.

The “how” of informing beachgoers comes in the form of a multifaceted marketing campaign that includes an educational website, use of our mass notification system to disseminate timely information, partnering with local businesses, and making lifesaving information easy to access through the use of QR code stickers on lifeguard vehicles, public and private sector buildings, beverage coasters at restaurants, and radio ads playing on the local stations, as well as targeted social media and traditional advertising. Click the video below to learn more about the campaign and its selection as the winner of the prestigious International Association of Emergency Managers 2023 Preparedness Award.

A vibrant Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean Ambassador program will bring additional success to these efforts.

Duties of Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean Ambassadors:

The role of any ambassador is flexible. Ambassadors may choose to help with:

Marketing the campaign by visiting local businesses to share beach safety information and materials
Distributing Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean stickers and materials
Discussing ocean hazards with beachgoers
Assisting ocean rescue personnel with simple tasks like raising Beach Warning Flags as conditions change
Sharing beach condition reports with the National Weather Service

Volunteer may donate as many or a few hours as they would like. Past volunteers have documented their work with the Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean campaign to receive college credit.

How to Sign Up:

For more information about the Love the Beach, Respect the Ocean campaign, please visit www.LoveTheBeachRespectTheOcean.com.