(RepublicanJournal.org) – Several people are in the hospital after huge storm-driven waves hammered the California coast. Seawater surged over sea walls, sweeping away onlookers, as storms drove the waves ashore. Exposed towns were evacuated to prevent more casualties.
On December 29, storms in the Pacific Ocean sent huge waves crashing onto the coast of California. That led to chaos as people eager to see the dramatic ocean scenes got too close to the water — and found themselves in danger.
At Pierpont Beach, in the city of Ventura, around 20 people were battered as a rogue wave surged over the seawall and swept them off their feet. Video captured by the Ventura City Fire Department shows people running in panic as a wall of foaming water races toward them. Eight of them were injured by the wave and had to be taken to hospital.
After that incident, police closed the beaches to deter anyone else from putting themselves in danger as waves grew to up to 20 feet high. The fire department built temporary berms to protect residential areas from flooding.
In another incident at Santa Cruz, two children watching the waves were also caught by surprise after a surge erupted through a railing and knocked them off their feet. Santa Cruz Sheriff’s Office later issued evacuation orders for coastal areas as weather stations in the area measured waves up to 33 feet high.
The weather wasn’t all bad news, though. Surfers flocked to Half Moon Bay to take advantage of the freak sea conditions. Although the National Weather Service issued a high surf warning, that seems to have acted as a lure for the bolder surfers. Jackson Fisk of Mavericks Surf Company said some surfers were “really hyped” about the giant waves and were even competing in a photo contest. However, even those daredevils were planning to get out of the water before another storm came in on December 29.
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