PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. — An Alabama man drowned Sunday off the coast of Panama City Beach, Florida, while rescuing his daughter from a rip current.
News outlets report that Christopher Pierce, 47, of Helena, Alabama, drowned rescuing his daughter.
“He was successfully able to get her out of the water,” Panama City Beach Police Chief J.R. Talamantez told WMBB. “But in his attempt, he got caught in a rip current ... he ultimately died.”
Panama City Beach Rescue officials told WMBB that they answered at least 10 swimmer-in-distress calls this past week. Officials warned tourists to heed red warning flags posted to signal dangerous conditions.
“There are no words to describe what the family is probably going through when they lose their father, a husband, on Father’s Day while they’re on vacation. All of these tragedies can be avoided. All of these tragedies don’t have to happen,” Talamantez told the station.
News outlets reported that Pierce's was the second drowning in less than a week.
Firefighter Richard Alford, 52, of Lula, Georgia, drowned Thursday at Panama City Beach after he entered the Gulf to help two beachgoers who were fighting a rip current, according to reports.
