Escambia County Public Safety Director Eric Gilmore is improving the public safety messaging on Perdido Key to avoid further drownings on the beaches in southwest Escambia County.
“We are putting up notices that there are no lifeguards at the four public access points,” said Gilmore. “And as you cross over the dunes, we’re working on putting rip current signage out there, making sure that’s visible as walk onto the public beach.”
The county is also working on getting the flags along the beach in sync. “There are four different entities out there that fly flags—the private condos, state park, Gulf Islands National Seashore and Station 19. We’re making sure we’re getting out the same message on the rip currents.”
Gilmore continued, “I need to work with the condos and make sure that they’re on board with flying the same flag that we’re all flying across the key. So messaging, communication, and coordination right now are what we’re focusing on and to make sure everybody’s on the same page at the key.”
He said that the county provides lifeguards on the federal law on Johnson Beach but not the rest of Perdido Key because it was thought that those areas were privately owned.
If the county can prove that there is a 75-foot public beach easement, then more lifeguards could be placed on Perdido Key at the taxpayers’ expense.
“Right out the gate, when we buy a lifeguard stand that’s $60,000, and that’s just one of those fiberglass hut, no power that sits out there,” Gilmore said. “And then we started adding our manpower, at least a minimum of two lifeguards at each stand running nine to six. You’re looking somewhere around $70,000 per stand, not including the vehicles that we need to go out there. We have four-wheelers at Pensacola Beach.”
