PEGGY'S COVE, N.S. -- Pictures emerged online this weekend of a man coming dangerously close to the water's edge at Peggy's Cove during some rough and windy weather.

It's not the first time this has happened, and it has safety advocates, police and those who make a living at Peggy's Cove once again calling for more common sense for those who venture onto the slippery rocks.

"That's a frightening scene," said Dan Bedell of the Canadian Red Cross. "You could be dead in a matter of minutes. If that person were to fall in that water, at this time of year, with no thermal protection, they could drown immediately."

The RCMP say the person is not breaking the law, but Halifax RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Lisa Croteau says this kind of risk-taking has to stop.

"They're putting their own safety at risk if they get too close to water, as well as the first responders who will attend to them if they do end up falling over," Croteau said.

In the 10 years that Peggy's Cove tour boat operator Peter Richardson has been in business, he knows of several people who have drowned at the popular tourism site, and he's witnessed some harrowing close calls,

"And I've seen people dipping their feet of their children hanging over a rock," Richardson said.

Every time someone falls in, Richardson and other boat operators are asked to help with the rescue.

"It puts our lives at risk," Richardson says.

Richardson wants people to enjoy the natural beauty of Peggy's cove, not engage in dangerous activities.

"I think they're uneducated on how serious a position they are putting themselves into," Richardson said.

Richardson says people falling into the water is not only scary -- and sometimes deadly -- it's also potentially harmful to the picturesque image of this summer tourism hotspot.