More Concerns After Massive Waves Cover Weekend Surf Competition
HALF MOON BAY -More than a dozen spectators suffered injuries during Maverick’s Surf Contest on Saturday when giant waves knocked them down. Contest organizers call it the risk of Mother Nature, but at least one county supervisor wants changes before next year’s competition
“We can’t stop people from going into the ocean,” said contest organizer Katherine Clark. “It’d be like trying to stop a surfer from going surfing.”
Mavericks organizers blame Mother Nature for the surge that crashed on to spectators yesterday. They say they warn fans every year not to stand on a concrete wall near the ocean’s edge and every year people still do.
“It’s common sense. If you see the tide rising you just need to be aware,” Clark said.
At least 13 people were injured, three were hospitalized, and as many as 40 were knocked off their feet. Now, Supervisor Richard Gordon, who represents San Mateo County’s coastline, says there will need to be changes in order for the event to receive permits next year.
Everyone thought the area was safe.
“Obviously, given the conditions that Mother Nature gave us yesterday, it wasn’t,” Gordon said. “And, so moving people away from that area, keeping that area clear, additional signage is probably going to be very helpful in the future.”
One day later, spectators were back out, standing in the very area where signs warn them not to.
When told he was standing in an area where he was not supposed to be standing spectator Rob Keller replied, “That’s true. But, I don’t see any waves coming so I’m not really worried.”
That changed in an instant as a wave unexpectedly crashed on to the shore.
“It’s exactly what happened yesterday isn’t it?” said one bystander. “It’s exactly what happened.”
The contest winner, Chris Bertish from South Africa, said the waves were so big they may end up in the record books and so big that none of the surfers even noticed the chaos on the beach.
“I’ve been surfing big waves all over the world and to be perfectly honest, there’s really nothing like what we surfed yesterday,” he told ABC7.
Organizers say they will look at moving vendors away from the coastline just to be safe, but people need to stay away.
“We can just try to give them all the information we can so they know they need to take care of it, but don’t you know that it’s dangerous when people go to the beach?” Park said.
