Solo Surfer Paddles Out During Tsunami Warning (Video)

Originally posted on SURFER | By Dashel Pierson | Last updated Dec 7, 2024 6:50 PM ET

In Hollywood, as expected, tsunamis look a little different than real life. The movie version of a tsunami is a very large swell – like the one in The Day After Tomorrow, which staggers towards New York City, toppling over the Statue of Liberty, before breaking in the Financial District, and wreaking havoc on lower Manhattan – similar to a supersized version of the waves we surf on a daily basis.

But in reality, tsunamis don’t break like that. It’s more of a surge than a wave.

Regardless, a 7.0 earthquake last week off the coast in Humboldt County in Northern California prompted a tsunami warning, spanning from San Francisco all the way up to Oregon. But that didn’t stop a surfer from paddling out at Ocean Beach, shortly after the warning was canceled.

“We’re seeing people return to the coastline,” an ABC affiliate reported, as they captured a surfer paddling out. “I’m wondering, like, you’re coming back to the beach to see…not a tsunami. What’re you looking at? He clearly was waiting for the all clear that it was okay to go back again. We saw another guy who was out there 20 minutes ago, and there was no way he was there after it lifted. I’m guessing he didn’t even know. He was out in the middle of nowhere.”

Even though the warning was canceled shortly after it was issued, being near the ocean, and paddling out for a surf so soon after an offshore earthquake, is not recommended…obviously.

But, hey, no crowds.

Per the Los Angeles Times, they explained the danger:

“Do not attempt to surf or watch the tsunami. You cannot surf a tsunami, as there is no face to a tsunami wave. Regular waves flow in a circle without flooding higher areas. Tsunami waves are unpredictable and flood the land like a wall of water.”

So, this surfer at Ocean Beach – legendary move, or dangerous dumbness? Maybe a bit of both.

“This gentleman, hats off to you,” the newscasters continued. “I’ve surfed Ocean Beach before. It’s a brutal paddle out. Hopefully he gets a good one and comes back in. He may be holding his surfboard the wrong way – wax in – but still, hats off to him.”

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: