Video: Huge Waves Cancel Surf Contests in Hawaii
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The North Shore of Oahu is world-renowned for its wintertime big waves, its slew of high-class surf spots dotting the Seven Mile Miracle, and yearly surf heroics.
But the swell (and storm) currently hitting the Hawaiian Islands, and specifically the North Shore of Oahu, is something different. This isn’t the typical big waves that send surfers flocking to the Proving Grounds annually. This is angry. Victory at sea. Chaos.
It’s been so wild and wooly, in fact, that two surf contests have been canceled. First, the iconic Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational at Waimea Bay, which was tentatively called on, then abandoned once the conditions became clearer. Then, the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach, the second stop on the World Surf League’s Championship Tour.
“Life threatening conditions out here,” Lieutenant Kerry Atwood of Honolulu Ocean Safety told KHON2. “It’s not just an average high surf day. So, Ocean Safety, we’re coordinating with the Department of Emergency Management. We’re providing them with realtime shoreline updates, and they will be assisting us, should we need to close roads or beach parks.”
As the swell filled in Thursday, and continued through Friday, officials put caution tape around certain beaches to discourage surfers and swimmers from heading out.
“This is precautionary,” said Lifeguard Joey Cadiz. “We do anticipate the swell to rise beyond these barriers. That’s what’s dangerous about a rising swell like this. It’s unpredictable. What you’re looking at one moment, will be totally different in the next hour.”
Earlier this season, the World Surf League called off the Lexus Pipe Pro during a massive, messy day of swell. Some competing surfers and surf fans were unhappy with the decision. As for this swell, it's more of a no-brainer not to run.
Related: Waves Too Big, World Surf League Calls Off Pipe Pro
The Hurley Pro Sunset Beach should resume in the next couple days when the stormy conditions subside; as for The Eddie, who knows. The Bay calls the day.
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