Sneaker Wave, Jetty, Rip Tide, Hypothermia Are West Coast Dangers

Yesterday, according to Oregon News, 22-year-old Leafil Alfoque was hit by a sneaker wave that pulled her away from her fiance, 45-year-old Scott Naperton and swept her out to sea. Scott Naperton intended to propose marriage, but she had been killed. Other recent sneaker waves, according to Wikipedia and HighBeam Research, have injured a six-year-old when a large log rolled over her.

The web pages for the Washington and Oregon coast show warnings about a sneaker wave, and about walking on the jetty. Don't turn your back to the ocean because of sneaker waves is prevalent on many state web sites. A study of the drowning deaths of children in 2004 by the Washington State Department of Health ended with the recommendation that most deaths were due to not wearing a life vests near the cold ocean water that can cause hypothermia.

I often go to the Washington ocean shores in Grayland and Ocean Shores and down the coast to vacation. I've observed a sneaker wave in action near the Westport Jetty, almost getting caught in one myself and once got scared by ocean waves and the tide coming in at the jetty.

The day seemed entirely pleasant with the sun shining, waves lapping the shores at regular intervals, sailboarders riding waves inshore and no hint that a sneaker wave was about to hit. I turned away from the ocean water to answer a question, then a sneaker wave came toward me that looked taller than my height.

As a kid I swim in the ocean waves, feeling the cold ocean water turn my legs numb, but that day I ran to avoid getting wet. The sneaker wave seemed to build more and more ocean water. Once safe on high sand, I turned and a man waist deep in ocean water from the sneaker wave with the sand pulling out around him and his daughter clinging to his hand. Another daughter was on hands and knees sliding straight out into the ocean water. Everyone on the beach froze, unable to move because of the horror of the situation. The girl disappeared under the sneaker wave then released about thirty feet down the beach where she walked ashore.

Not everyone is as lucky. The Oregon State Police reports occasionally discoveries of bodies washed up on shore. Chances are that whatever the accident, hypothermia caused by the average ocean water temperatures ranging from 45-58F, according to the National Oceanographic Data Center. The Machovec website explains how hypothermia affects the body by lowering core temperature and suggests to get out of the ocean water as quickly as possible. Often a lifevest can keep your head above ocean water long enough for you to climb back aboard your boat, or get pulled out of the ocean water by search and rescue workers.

Another time I climbed the jetty, but was moving too slow to keep up with companions so I thought I'd walk along the sand at the base for awhile to catch up with them. Unfortunately, the tide started coming in so I decided I better climb up the rocks, but they were really slippery and sharp so I became quite scared. By the time I got to the top, my friends were returning and an ocean wave crashed over the jetty top behind them.

The Washington and Oregon shores are eroding as much as 100 feet per year in places due to tidal forces, according to the Washington State Department of Ecology, including destroying property at the well-known Washaway Beach. These same forces are the cause of a sneaker wave. Despite the changes to the Washington and Oregon coast, and the dangers of hypothermia, rolling logs, sneaker waves and walking on the jetty, I still find the ocean beach to be a source of endless enjoyment. If you go, be sure to have small children wear life vests near the ocean water and face the waves.