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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (July 7, 2021)
SIUSLAW NEWS | WEDNESDAY, JULY 7, 2021 | 7A WAVES from page 1A As he puts it, they’re known as “coastal border interface hazards,” which means sneaker waves hap- pen on the coastline and affect individuals on land. Meanwhile, beachgoers reaching the deep-end, like fishermen and surfers, are less likely to feel an im- pact and sometimes will never notice because they appear less intense in the water than on land. Other times, sneaker waves can be subtle by only reaching the extent of someone’s feet or an- kles, Newman explained. Though the threat of sneaker waves is much higher in the winter, one of the greater issues amongst the Oregon Coast is its low temperatures ranging between the high 40s and 50s, which can trigger cold water shock during all sea- sons of the year. In part of this, awareness of what sneaker waves are is essen- tial in prioritizing safety. “Even if someone is per- fectly healthy, their body almost seizes up. Even if they know they need to swim, they can’t physical- ly move the muscles, their arms and their legs like it doesn’t have they normal- to be that ly could, and deep to start they can end causing that up drown- log to roll ing,” he said. back down “Their body the beach goes into a towards the state of shock waterline. going from And if you’re being per- between the fectly warm log and the to now all of a sea, then that sudden being could be over very cold.” the top of A useful you.” tool recom- Newman also mended by talked about the NWS rip currents. to detect Among the and pre- ocean’s nat- dict sneaker ural events, waves is by rip currents visiting fore- are common cast.weather. Signs up and down the coast show the beach hazards people should be aware along the gov. At the West Coast top left cor- of when they recreate in or near the Pacific Ocean. and they oc- ner of the page, type in “Florence, are days when the sneaker as a high sneaker wave cur on a daily basis, he said. These waves are recog- Oregon” into the search wave threat is the highest threat,” Newman said. In previous incidents, nized as fast and narrow bar. Above the main fore- along our coastline,” New- logs have crushed beach channels of moving wa- cast, look out for the High man adds. Surf Advisory or High Another useful way of visitors by rolling down the ter with powerful under- Surf Warning headline predicting sneaker waves beach caused by big waves. tones moving away from “It’s important to be the shore. Different from above the main forecast or generally large waves to see if there is a sneaker is by checking marine. aware of the number of a sneaker wave, beach vis- wave alert before heading weather.gov. According to logs between you and the itors swimming or surfing to the coast. Newman, look for a swell ocean, as well as how close will be the most impacted “The days when we is- height rise to 9 ft or higher the water is to reaching by the power of rip cur- sue High Surf Advisories, when its dominant period them,” Newman said. “If the rents. Researchers from Ore- High Surf Warnings or is 14 seconds or higher in waves are running up and the water is getting to near gon State University’s oce- Coastal Flood Warnings the forecast. the logs are on the beach, anic department claim rip “We would classify that currents are difficult to predict, but can be detect- ed by long-shore currents moving from the left and right, based on studies conducted in 2009. Along with Newman’s observations, he said the areas where the water is moving faster out to sea than other areas is a sign of a rip current. A natural reaction is to swim towards the shore, but the NWS emphasizes the importance of swim- ming parallel to the coast and to never fight the cur- rent. “The rip current is stron- ger than you can swim. That’s where people get into trouble, as they try swimming directly toward the shore and wear them- selves out and eventually,” Newman explained. “Swim parallel to the coast, and if the current is taking you more to the south or more to the north, start swim- ming in that direction.” He proceeded to sug- gest it would be easier to swim back to shore once the person has reached 100 feet parallel to the shore outside of the current. In a case where swimming is not possible, the NWS advises people to float or tread water. As research on sneak- er waves and rip currents continue, the NWS rec- ommends to never swim alone, remain calm to con- serve energy and to think clearly. If you notice some- one in danger, call 911 for help. As the saying goes, never turn your back to the ocean. 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