I knew that the San Luis Pass at the SW end of Galveston Island was dangerous when I was growing up in Waco in the '50s.  We had family in Houston and Pearland and spent considerable time all up and down Galveston Island.  San Luis Pass was always known for great fishing but treacherous currents and undertows.  I had some personal experiences with the great fishing and hazards in my pre-teen years when my father and some uncles camped and fished there for a few days.  We almost lost my dad's Yellow Jacket boat there one afternoon.  Back then if someone lost their life in such a dangerous place it was generally accepted that their survival instincts had failed them.  Sad but move along.

Today on the so called "local news" there was an item about how many drownings there have been in and near the pass lately and over recent years.  It was suggested that swimming and fishing should be banned in that area.  Give me a break!  The area is no more dangerous than it was 100 years ago but the idiot density is much higher.  I'm very sorry for the people who die there and their families but in the long run dangerous places are good for our species.

I'm fairly sure I've only addressed the tip of the iceberg here.  The condo developers have been trying to pry this area away from the public for years.

If you get in and wade near that pass Darwin has his you in his crosshairs .

When I was younger I fished many a night on that pier.

Fished Christmas bay and the surf back toward surfside. But I stayed out of the pass

put a few warning signs up and let the chips fall where they may.
on average 12 people a year fall into the grand canyon and die. should we close that too?

Another one drowned just this past week. I have always had a healthy respect/fear of SLP. Too many have died there throughout the years. Funny, I finally ran my boat through the pass last month. It wasn't nearly as deep as I envisioned. Of course, the depth can change in a New Your minute.

There are signs. Doesn't stop them. Lot of lives taken there over the years.

My family and I have fished there many years and are still alive to tell the tales...

You just have to UNDERSTAND the situation.

Due to the flow of water in & out, there are a lot of rip tides...   People freak out and try to swim against the riptide, instead of across it...

Couple more people drowned this past week there, so you have to be know what you are doing & be careful (kind of like riding a motorcycle or shooting a gun...)

Many years ago we wad fished at San Luis pass and you had to know your business with the rip currents and sharks.  A buddy of mine had 4 specks taken off his stringer by a rather large tiger shark and we left for the day.  My guess is 100 people or more have died swimming or fishing on both sides over the years. Fishing from a boat is the way to go and I know not everyone can afford one.  

According to Channel 13 News Brazoria County commissioners have passed the ban on bathing, swimming, and fishing around SLP and it goes into effect on 18 August.  That covers the Freeport/Surfside area where we usually went and survived.  It will be interesting to see if Galveston County follows suit.  Businesses at that end of the island are going to lose some revenue if people stop going there to fish and swim.

Link

I keep trying to tell myself that Texas is not going blue but stuff like this really makes me wonder.

Sadly, 1st responders have to search for/locate/recover/process the idiots as well as the regular people.  Helochoppers and RHIB's and shit cost money. 

Now what they could do is figure out the average cost of a rescue/recovery.  Multiply by the number of people rescued/recovered last year, and divide by the # of visitors that year.   Then tack another 15% on to that dollar figure.  That's your entry fee. Fence/bollard that shit off, install fee booth.

Fewer rescues per visitor?  fee goes down next year.  Lots of tards drown?  Fee goes up.

Yep. There are a lot of signs and people continue to get in the water. You can still fish from land.

We were fishing that same spot a few weeks ago in that photo of the ban... saw probably 10 signs warning of swim and rip currents.. thought never crossed my mind to go wade fishing or swimming.. had already read about the dangers there years ago before we ever fished it..

You can get a really good cast off from ankle to knee deep water... caught plenty of fish those couple of days without having to be risky about it... great fishing spot .. really unfortunate to read about the drownings there recently...

That one with 7 people in a kayak, a couple of them littles with no life jacket wtf.. could have turned out worse

Legislating out stupidity only makes for more hardy stupid people.