By Michael Shanks, Director, Business Development, Genasys Inc
Key Takeaways:
- High beach traffic driven by tourism is placing increased strain on coastal agencies responsible for keeping beachgoers safe.
- Traditional communication tools often fall short during critical situations. Beachgoers may not hear instructions or ignore them.
- Clear, long-range voice communication supports coastal fire, rescue, and lifeguard personnel to prevent incidents before they escalate, reducing rescues and easing the workload on lifeguards and responders.
The rise in both national and global tourism, bringing large crowds of people unfamiliar with local weather and ocean conditions, makes coastal environments more difficult to manage. Record beach crowds, limited staffing, coupled with climate change (which has led to changing and less predictable ocean conditions in some regions), place immense pressure on lifeguards and coastal fire departments. At the same time, public scrutiny, amplified over the years by social media, continues to raise expectations for rapid response and public safety.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), there were 99 surf zone fatalities in 2025. There have already been 14 in 2026, which will likely spike when we reach the summer. The most recent USLA National Statistics Report shows there were 85,258 rescues across the U.S.
This creates a physically and mentally grueling job for rescuers, lifeguards, and Coast Guard personnel, who are forced to dive into extremely dangerous ocean conditions to save people’s lives. It is also a constant drain on resources, costing agencies thousands annually. Worst of all, many of these rescues and deaths could be completely avoided with better communication.
To support lifeguards and improve shoreline safety, agencies are turning to long-range acoustic communication solutions. This blog will look at what makes keeping people safe so difficult and how to improve results for public safety agencies in coastal regions.
The Dangers of Inattentive Beachgoers
Many incidents start with people misreading dangerous conditions. Lifeguards regularly deal with weak swimmers who drift too far out, overconfident swimmers who underestimate currents, and tourists unfamiliar with local conditions. Red flags are ignored too often, which ends up with people wading into rip currents, climbing onto wet rocks, or turning their backs on the ocean.
What looks manageable to inexperienced people looking from the shore can quickly escalate into a rescue in seconds, especially when multiple people are involved. Lifeguards and coastal teams constantly face the challenge of unpredictable human behavior.
Why Beach Environments Create Communication Gaps
When beaches are crowded with hundreds of conversations happening at once, the wind sweeps voices into the distance, and crashing waves drown out all other sound, how can lifeguards be expected to keep everyone safe across large areas?
High Noise and Distraction Reduce Message Clarity
Ocean waves, wind, and large crowds create a constant wall of sound. Traditional tools struggle in these environments. Shouting is quickly lost in wind and surf. Megaphones lose clarity over distance, especially with large crowds. Sirens and whistles get attention but provide no context, making them easier to ignore and leaving people unsure how to respond. As a result, instructions are often missed, misunderstood, or ignored.
Wide Coverage Areas with Staffing Constraints Increase Risk
Beaches can stretch for miles, making it difficult for lifeguards and coastal fire departments to communicate across them. Many coastal agencies are doing more with less. Fewer lifeguards covering larger areas means communication tools must extend reach, improve efficiency, and reduce reliance on manual intervention.
Why Agencies Are Turning to Genasys: How Long-Range Voice Communication Supports Lifeguards
Long-range acoustic devices (LRADs) allow coastal fire and rescue personnel to project clear, intelligible voice messages across large beach areas. Unlike megaphones, their design allows them to maintain clarity across long distances even in high noise and wind environments. Clear and powerful voice communication improves compliance and reduces confusion. This results in fewer rescues needed and a far lower risk of loss of life. LRADs can be used to:
- Warn beachgoers and swimmers of rip currents, undertows, and unsafe water conditions
- Communicate beach instructions, restrictions, and closures
- Eliminate the need for lifeguards to leave their towers to warn swimmers and beachgoers of dangerous water conditions or threats
- Communicate AMBER or lost child alerts to beachgoers over wide areas
- Announce beach hours or emergency closures
- Serve as a personnel multiplier, limiting the number of lifeguards and law enforcement officers needed to clear beaches during holidays or to enforce beach restrictions
LRADs can be used remotely, with cameras mounted on them, to broadcast information and instructions when lifeguards and operators are not physically present. This enables broader coverage from a central location without requiring personnel everywhere.
The Results
Clear, long-range voice communication changes how beaches are managed day to day:
- Lifeguards can reach large areas instantly, give specific instructions, and prevent situations from escalating in the first place.
- Fewer swimmers drift into dangerous conditions, and fewer rescues are needed as a result.
- Teams spend less time repeating warnings or chasing compliance and more time focused on surveillance and response.
- It also reduces the chance of multiple people getting pulled into the same incident, which can quickly overwhelm available resources.
- Over time, this leads to more controlled beaches, fewer disruptions, and a more manageable workload for responders.
Enabling “Smart Beaches” Through Better Communication
Just as cities are evolving into smart cities, beaches are beginning to adopt smarter safety strategies. When combined with Genasys Protect, which integrates sensors and weather data feeds, LRADs can broadcast automated alerts when conditions like lightning, high surf, or severe weather are detected. This leads to:
- Faster alerting when hazards are detected
- Continuous coverage even when personnel are not available
- Integrating with broader emergency preparedness strategies
- Supporting preparedness and safety daily
The gap between detection and response turns monitoring systems into real-time communication tools. This shift allows coastal fire departments to operate more efficiently while improving public safety outcomes.
Real-World Impact: From Chaos to Control
Case studies from coastal communities demonstrate how improved communication can transform operations. In Coronado, lifeguards used LRAD systems to warn swimmers and clear the water during severe weather, including lightning and heavy storms, helping communicate danger across a large, crowded shoreline.
This, and other case studies across La Jolla, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, and others, consistently highlight the need for effective communication systems to improve outcomes.
Conclusion: Clear Communication Saves Lives
Increasing tourism and climate change will continue to make beach environments harder to keep safe. As safety conditions become more complex and resources remain constrained, long-range voice communication becomes an essential tool to support lifeguards and improve outcomes across coastal communities.
Contact Genasys today to schedule a demo and see how LRAD solutions can support your team.
FAQs
How do LRADs support lifeguards during emergencies?
LRADs support lifeguards by delivering clear, intelligible voice instructions over long distances, helping direct crowds and improving response times during emergencies.
Why is communication difficult on beaches?
Beaches present challenges due to ocean noise, wind, and large crowds, which make it hard for traditional alerts like sirens or whistles to convey clear instructions.
Can long-range communication improve routine beach safety?
Yes. Lifeguards can use long-range systems to deliver preventive messages about hazards, reducing incidents before they occur.
How do coastal fire departments benefit from LRAD systems?
They improve coordination, extend communication reach, and enable real-time updates across large shoreline areas during both daily operations and major incidents.
