Video: Damage, Injuries on Oregon Coast Extensive; One Death

Published 01/19/2018 at 3:12 AM PDT - Updated 01/19/2018 at 4:02 AM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Oregon Coast) – It's entirely possible Thursday's massive ocean swells were the worst in recent history for the Oregon coast for tidal surge, both in damage to buildings and harm to people. (Photo above: log pierces the oceanfront Sandcastle Motel in Lincoln City, courtesy North Lincoln Fire and Rescue).

Meanwhile, high surf warnings to stay off the beaches remain, and the public is advised to stay off them through the weekend.

It doesn't help that the people weren't listening, either, in spite of the most publicized set of storm warnings ever for the Oregon coast.

Waves as high as 60 feet in some places pummeled the beaches, resulting in evacuated businesses, destroyed property, one death and at least two injuries.

A roundup of storm incidents (including videos and links to videos):

The biggest tragedy on the Oregon coast was the man living in Newport who was swept into the surf at Depoe Bay. The man, who was in his 40s, went beyond the seawall to get a closer look at the Spouting Horn around 11:30 a.m. and was sucked in. Emergency crews and the U.S. Coast Guard searched for him the entire afternoon but gave up after sundown. He is presumed dead.

Huge waves caused damage to several oceanfront buildings and injured two.

Both the Sea Gypsy Rentals and the Sandcastle Motel were hit by waves, along with Kyllo's Restaurant - all in Lincoln City. The Sandcastle and other buildings were evacuated, while the Sea Gypsy experienced a massive wave punching through one of the units, knocking over a woman in her 70s. She was taken to the hospital and released, later describing her ordeal on regional television stations.

Kyllo's, next to the Sea Gypsy, had a natural gas pipe severed by waves and debris and it too was evacuated.

North Lincoln Fire and Rescue (NLFR) responded to each incident.

“Estimated damages will be well over a million dollars combined to all the businesses, not to mention the loss of revenue from not being open,” NLFR said on its Facebook page.

In spite of clear warnings, four women began wandering the beach at the Road's End district, when all were hit by a giant wave. One of them received leg injuries and was sent to the hospital.

In Cape Disappointment, Washington, waves shoved massive logs into an enormous pile of debris, seen in a video taken by a Pacific Northwest photographer.

Other spectacular videos showed towering waves coming over Cape Kiwanda (which is itself at least 50 feet high) as well as waves over 100 feet tall erupting over the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse offshore from Cannon Beach and Seaside.

At Seaside, some waves made it to the Turnaround, which is normally a good 500 feet from the tideline.

In Yachats and Neskowin, plenty of videos showed waves topping over the clifftops and splashing homes or at least surging through yards. In Cannon Beach, the home of musician Maggie Kitson sits back quite a ways over the bluffs, but heavy seas managed to surge over the dunes and into her backyard.

The north Oregon coast fared better, with no significant damage reported so far. Nehalem streets were flooded for awhile, a buoy for measuring wave height was found on a north coast beach, and one man in Rockaway Beach recorded a particularly nasty encounter with a sneaker wave that came over the dunes and soaked him. Oregon Coast Lodgings for this - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours

Photos below courtesy Seaside Aquarium:

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