Tourists ignore red warning light at Reynisfjara Black Beach
A red warning light is currently flashing at Reynisfjara beach due to dangerous surf conditions, and a barrier has been placed across the path leading to the shore. Despite this, tourists are still venturing down to the beach, putting themselves at serious risk.
Photographer and guide Páll Jökull Pétursson was at Reynisfjara early this morning with a group of tourists when he saw a number of visitors blatantly ignoring the warning light and making their way down to the water’s edge.
According to Pétursson, most people didn’t even stop to read the warning sign by the beach. Some did read it — but chose to continue anyway.
He described how the tourists seemed to treat the waves like a game, standing close to the water and then running away as the waves crashed in.
Traveling without guides
Pétursson noted that those who ignored the barrier were traveling alone, without guides.
Guides, he explained, strictly instruct their groups not to go down to the beach when the red warning light is flashing. Instead, they encourage visitors to enjoy the dramatic view safely from the observation platform near the parking area.
The warning system at Reynisfjara was recently upgraded following a fatal accident in August. The red light is now triggered more frequently, and a new gate has been installed to physically block the path leading from the parking lot down to the beach when conditions are dangerous.
Heavy waves at Reynisfjara Black Beach. mbl.is/RAX
