Stay away or 'risk certain death': High surf advisories issued in California as giant waves batter coast

The National Weather Service has issued high surf advisories in California Tuesday as giant waves battered the coast.

In San Francisco, forecasters expect waves as high as 30 feet, with favored break points along the coast seeing larger waves, said the NWS in its advisory.

On Sunday, waves had been forecast to reach as high as 50 feet in some spots, reports local TV station KGO.

Beachgoers are urged to use caution near the surf zone as the waves "will be capable of sweeping people into the frigid and turbulent ocean water," said NWS.

On Saturday, the NWS branch in the Bay Area warned people to stay away from the coast. "Stay well back from the ocean or risk certain death," they wrote on Twitter.

However, it didn't appear to stop people from visiting local beaches and check out the waves crashing on the coast.

"The forecasters first were saying, really big waves, so I figure I’ve got to come. Then they were saying, 'Oh, you’re going to die if you come.' So, I’ve really got to come then,” resident Mark Alfenito told KPIX.

The large waves also prompted the postponement of the Mavericks challenge, an annual surfing event in Half Moon Bay, Calif., reports The Mercury News.

Surfers still couldn't resist the big waves, though. "They were unpredictable and raw … and moving really, really fast. It was like you had to fly surf," said surfer Bianca Valenti to The Mercury News.

More: Pacific storms, coastal reef create Mavericks' 60-foot surf waves

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Stay away or 'risk certain death': High surf advisories issued in California as giant waves batter coast