If you have attended Flagler Beach recently, you may have noticed some hurricane damage, or maybe even some enormous waves. Hurricane season can be devastating for the locals in Flagler Beach. Although unpredictable, the surfers of this small town know one thing for sure. The storm is bound to bring fun waves.
Photo by Landen Looker.
Flagler Beach is home to one of the most heartful and prominent surf communities of the east coast, with brilliant pros emerging from the area, such as Robbie McCormick. Locals of all ages, skill levels, and backgrounds join to surf the Flagler Beach pier daily. Many contests and events are hosted in this town as well, including the Tommy Tant Surf Classic and the all-girls contest, Her Turn. The sense of community that surfing has brought to this small beach town is unbelievable. “I cannot wait until next year, the contest is awesome for the community and to empower all women surfers”, says Isabella Santiago, a participant of the first annual Her Turn contest.
The formation of a hurricane can occur any time of year, but the official Atlantic hurricane season affects Florida from June 1st through November 30th. Hurricanes and tropical storms create deeper water close to shore, and with the help of strong winds, larger waves that would previously break out in the ocean are pushed to shore.
Recently, we have observed changes in storm patterns that may cause these cyclones to happen more frequently, which is exciting news for surfers. Avid surfer of the Flagler Beach pier, Skye Blumenfeld, adds that “there is no better time for a surfer in Florida than hurricane season”, “we wait all year for waves, and we know that there has to be some sort of swell coming around September”.
During this time, the residents of Flagler Beach take precautions to protect their homes from flooding, destruction and erosion. The small businesses of this town are also at risk. “It is definitely an exciting time”, adds Jimmy Blumenfeld, owner of the small business Ohana Food Co. “I have to worry about keeping my business from damage and my garage from flooding, but I also think I have by far the most fun surfing when the hurricanes come.”
Hurricane Lee swept the East Coast this last September and luckily turned before it made contact with Florida. Though we were not hit by the hurricane, we still experienced storm swell. The waves reached up to 8 feet, and surfers of Flagler Beach gathered in masses. Korvin Bruy added that he especially looks forward to the hurricane swell when “there hasn’t been any waves for months”. Some of the surfers even play hooky to cash in on the hurricane swell! Next time you are cruising A1A be sure to check out the surfing scene at Flagler Beach.
Photo by Landen Looker.
SOUNDS LIKE FUN! 🏄♀️