PANAMA CITY BEACH − Millions of tourists flock to the Beach every year to enjoy the Emerald Coast and southern hospitality.
Whole many have wonderful experiences, not all make it home. It seems like every year at least one beachgoer drowns while swimming in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of the Panama City Beach area.
For reference, there were nine local drownings in 2023, seven in 2024, three in 2025, and so far in this year, there have been two. Almost off of them were tourists who died after getting caught in rip currents.
As the PCB area continues to grapple with beach drownings, the News Herald is taking a poll asking which group is best positioned to help decrease these coastal tragedies. The options are:
The poll will remain open until noon June 11.
Not much is yet known about the 2026 victims, other than one was a male and the other was a female. Most local drownings happen in unguarded areas of the beach, or portions where lifeguards are not present. Both of the drownings from this year happened within the city limits of Panama City Beach.
According to past reports, the three 2025 drownings all were within PCB.
The area had seven total drownings in 2024. Three happened within PCB, with four others off unincorporated county beaches.
There were nine local drownings in 2023. Six happened off the coast of PCB, with three others off unincorporated county beaches.
Though the entire Panama City Beach area is often grouped together and known as “the Beach,” there are two different organizations that patrol the coast.
Panama City Beach lifeguards are traditionally stationed in towers around the Russell-Fields Pier. Bay County surf rescue specialists are positioned at Rick Seltzer Park and the M.B Miller Pier. The rest of the nearby coast is covered by roving patrols from either department.
This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Who should step up to help stop beach drownings in PCB? Take our poll
Reporting by Nathan Cobb, Panama City News Herald / The News Herald
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Nathan Cobb, Panama City News Herald | USA TODAY Network
