Jersey Shore waves: Watch the videos of 20-foot water walls in Ocean county
Huge waves along the Jersey Shore this week gave some surfers a run for their money, with some offshore waves heights reaching 20 feet before breaking.
The large waves attracted onlookers, photographers and surfers who came to see the powerful breakers up close.
One surfer, Brendan Tighe, told News12 he was out surfing Monday, when he was taken down by a 20-foot wave. "The wave stood up, I opened my eyes and it had gotten too vertical…so I had no choice but to leap," he said.
A photographer, Dave Nilsen, told News12 he was there to see it all. "I can undoubtedly say that was the biggest wipeout - the tallest, heaviest wave - that I have ever seen here," he said.
But the National Weather Service said the huge waves were not unique.
"They were certainly unusual but not anything unprecedented," said Alex Staarmann, meteorologist for the National Weather Service at Mt. Holly.
The National Weather Service did not record the heights of breaking waves Monday, but Staarmann said the buoys off-shore measured wave heights of about 20 or 21 feet off the coast of the northern Jersey Shore.
Staarmann said there are often large, breaking waves during and immediately following a storm, like the one felt across the state from Sunday into Monday. There was a very long period easterly swell due to the onshore wind.
Then, as the storm lifted north, the winds quickly shifted offshore, he said. The ocean current was pushing water and waves toward the beach, but then came the strong offshore wind, making the breaking waves even more magnified.
Staarmann the unusual aspect was that once the storm passed north of the area, it was mostly clear and sunny.
"A lot of times when the bigger waves are occurring there's still very strong winds and heavy rain or heavy snow, so there's not really anyone out there taking pictures...or out surfing," he said
Staarmann said if there's any time of year for waves like this, it's the winter starting around December, but especially January through March.
But that's not always the case.
"If we have a tropical cyclone...that passes close to our coast...there can also be waves of that magnitude," he said.
Jenna Calderón covers breaking news and cold cases in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Before coming to the Press, she covered The Queen City for Cincinnati Magazine in Ohio. Contact her at 330-590-3903; jcalderon@gannettnj.com
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: 20-foot NJ waves hit the Jersey Shore: watch the videos
