To the lifeguard's trained eye, the danger in the water is obvious.

"Usually a lighter green color, it's usually swirling. We describe it as a washing machine," says Lifeguard Dick Johnson.

But would you know a riptide if you saw one coming?

The answer bears repeating in a summer that's seen nearly a dozen drownings and countless near misses.

So, we asked lifeguards to show us what to do when the powerful current unexpectedly pulls you out to sea.

Even in a rip current that isn’t very strong, the swimmer drifts out. You should sit back and relax and then when the rip current starts to ease up, swim to the side.

But most people panic and do what Toni Maffeo did.

"I was trying to swim the opposite way at first and it wasn't working," says Toni.

"They panic. They try to struggle back. They drown," says Dick.

It's also important to note that you can get caught in a riptide even in water as little as knee deep. That's critical information for parents, who generally assume their kids are safe in shallow waters. Not so.

"Parents don't understand that little children can be swept off their feet, as soon as they lose contact with the floor of the ocean," says Dick. "If they're aren't any lifeguards, then you really shouldn't be in the water."