Gulf Shores, Ala. — (GSN) — Mainstream news outlets are often quick to mention beach tragedies somewhere along the water but local lifeguards do such a good job their work often goes unheralded. Each year, Gulf Shores Fire-Rescue responds to more than 300 water rescues. The department lives up to the city's motto, "Small Town, Big Beach."

With 12 miles of beach, the small fire department is stretched to ensure the safety of residents and tourists.

Fire chief Mark Sealy has created a beach rescue system and placed 12 full-time lifeguards and around 35 seasonal lifeguards along the coast.

"When the water's rough and there's conditions that create issues, we can't take the risk," Sealy said. "You've got to send a system. You've got to send a team."

Gulf Shores Beach Rescue operates as its own entity within the fire department. It has a beach safety chief and five lieutenants. They operate between 12 towers and patrol the beach daily. The goal is to keep towers manned by lifeguards while allowing them to rotate for breaks.

"We want to keep the towers manned the whole day so we don't have an empty tower where people are thinking they're protected and they're not," Sealy explained.

While spring months see the most water rescues, Seely said Memorial Day marks the start of summer travel, which means his team will be in high demand. In fact, after moving to Baldwin County from Mobile, Sealy said he was shocked to find out just how many water rescues the fire department conducts.

"You look at us in Orange Beach, we probably have the largest amount of high rises in the state, and then we have a population of 16,000. But we blossom to 150,000 in the summer," Sealy explained. "When I was in Chief of Mobile, we had 200,000 people that we took care of and had 25 stations, where there are 20 [staff] here, I had 140 there. So, that's a huge difference. We have to be bigger than we are."

Sealy said there is a need for more resources. He is conducting lifeguard classes year-round and ensuring that some firefighters receive lifeguard certifications.

"We're severely understaffed for a small community that has 150,000 extra people and as a result we have to be well-versed in a lot of different things," said Sealy. "Just about all of our people are cross-trained in so many things."

As the chief, Sealy said it is his job to assess risks and find solutions. He wants to see an agency responsible for beach safety requirements, similar to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), which sets standards for fire protection.

"There's no agency that requires safety on the beach," he added. "The beach is like the Wild West and that's where people are dying. If there was an intersection that was losing seven people a year in car wrecks, do you think we would not change that intersection up? If we were losing seven people to, you name it, accidents, some type of accidents, we would do something about them. But why are we not doing anything about beach safety?"

Sealy wants to see more prevalent education for beachgoers.

The Baldwin County EMA has partnered with local agencies to help spread information about beach safety. Beachgoers can text ALBEACHES to 888777 to receive daily beach conditions and warning flag status.

The Baldwin County EMA has also provided safety tips online.