The waves that we witness on our beaches likely have formed hundreds or even thousands of miles away when a strong storm with strong winds transmitted its energy to the water, disrupting the sea surface. The higher the velocity of the wind and the greater the distance of the ocean surface that the wind covers, the further the waves can travel and the larger they can become.
The water can be just two feet deep, but it can carry the young, the old, and the not-so-good swimmers out to sea. Drowning can become a possibility, especially on the Atlantic shore. Most people who do swim, can only swim about a pool's length and not in rough ocean water.
The sleeper wave surprised Mimi and me this summer on the Outer Banks in Kitty Hawk when we were both swept and knocked to the ground. Mimi lost her shoe, I gave chase to grab it, more waves followed, lost my footing, and we both got quite wet in the process by the subsequent waves. But I saved her shoe! We could have drowned but we were worried about losing plastic Oofos.
From Joe Keller: "Atlantic waves can be tough. We’ve lost four people in past couple weeks here. Several years ago, my son and I were surfcasting, and the surf was really rough. After casting our lines, we walked back to shore. A hammerhead shark had come up between us and the shore. A wave picked it up and tossed it in front of our beach chairs where it was stranded. It was in a lot of distress by time we got to it. We picked it up and carried it back into the ocean. We held onto it until it was strong enough to swim on its own. Then we made a beeline to shore and gave up for the day. If waves can toss sharks around, we don’t really have much chance."
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