NEW INFO: Rip current risk moderate again Friday

The rip current risk is once again moderate Friday along the Crystal Coast, but some coastal towns still don't want swimmers in the ocean.

Rip current risks are classified as low, moderate or high.

A moderate risk still indicates that swimmers should use caution when entering the water.

Today, yellow flags again greet swimmers at Emerald Isle. But at Indian Beach they have double red flags, while black flags are flying at Pine Knoll Shores. Atlantic Beach & Fort Macon both have red flags up warning swimmers to stay out of the ocean.

On Thursday, rescuers pulled 9 people from the water in Emerald Isle. One rescue was for seven members of the same family who are vacationing from Virginia.

They said Thursday was the first time they'd entered the water all week.

Emerald Isle says during an 11 day span that ended Wednesday, their fire and lifeguard crews rescued 84 people. Unfortunately, last Wednesday a Virginia man died trying to rescue a 12-year-old girl from the rip currents.

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Seven people were rescued, including several teenagers, after they got pulled out by rip currents this afternoon in Emerald Isle.

It happened shortly before 4:00 p.m. about a mile east of the Islander Inn.

A combination of lifeguards and firefighters pulled everyone to safety. No one was sent to the hospital, according to firefighters.

All seven are from the same family vacationing from Edinburg, Virginia.

"It was pretty rough and I was really scared that I, like last week when the guy passed away, I was really scared that something bad was going to happen to either me or my sister," Laurel Holsinger told WITN.

Heather Holsinger, her mother, says they have been at the beach all week and this was the first time their children went in the ocean.

"We looked out to check on them and three of them were out far enough that we were concerned that, a little angry to be honest," said Heather Holsinger. "But then we realized that they were having trouble and couldn't get back in."

The mother says her husband ran down to the beach, while she screamed at her father to call 911.

Holsinger's husband and father got in the water, and they too got caught up in the rip currents as well and had to be rescued.

Emerald Isle says they had a total of three rescues today with two others also safely pulled from the surf.

The town had been flying red flags for 11 straight days but lifted that today.