Swimmers at the Jersey Shore are facing their first real threats of rip currents this season due to Hurricane Chris forming hundreds of miles away in the Southeast.

Waves were expected to be at least 2 or 3 feet high Tuesday and are expected to be even taller Wednesday. 

Belmar lifeguards say that they are ready for the dangerous conditions. They say that the warm ocean temperatures combined with the hot air temperature have caused extra people to come down to the beach.

“The sandbar is just making people a little bit braver than they should be, because once they’re out there, they do have to get  back through the drop,” says Belmar lifeguard deputy director Corrina Weinkofsky.

Weinkofsky says that lifeguards can change the yellow warning flags to red flags any time during the day during the change of the tide. Red flags mean that swimming is off limits due to dangerous conditions.

Waves generated by tropical cyclones feel stronger on a swimmer’s body than local waves generated by wind.