Little Lagoon Drowning

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By Debbie Williams Reporter

M50o93H7pQ09L8X1t49cHY01Z5j4TT91fGfr Little Lagoon Drowning

Published: Wed, May 07, 2008 - 3:33 pm

Debbie Williams

A former city of Gulf Shores employee has died. Joe Ronan drowned while fishing at Little Lagoon Pass. A family spokesperson describes Ronan as a dedicated husband and Father, very active in youth league sports and a long time resident of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.
Experts say his death serves as a reminder of an ever present danger.
The beauty of Alabama's Gulf Coast, attracts thousands every year. But that beauty also disguises danger.
"You could get in trouble out there in a hurry," says Birmingham fishing guide Stevie Ray Moore.
Where Little Lagoon and the Gulf of Mexico meet, is the perfect example of trouble. It has claimed three lives in the last eighteen months according to Fire Marshal Keith Martin. "This is about as strong a current as you would have seen last night." Last night, it claimed another. "He (Ronan) was fishing on the east side of the pass and one person described it as he was walking along the edge, possibly to get a better position for fishing, and the sand gave way, out from under him and he fell into the current and the current pulled him out into the Gulf."
Little Lagoon Pass is as popular with tourist as it is with fishermen but the currents here are tricky. They run strong and fast and that's why you don't want to stay out of the water.
"The current is so strong," says Martin, "There's no way to fight it. You can have 15 to 20 miles per hour current, and in water this shallow, you can't stand up, you can try but it would just knock you down."
Moore says it reminds him of some of his fishing trips, "It's powerful it's like below a dam."
That power keeps him out of the water. "There's no sense taking a chance like that. You know Mother Nature is not too forgiving some times."
Last night, she proved it again.

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