Sydney surfers seek out new breaks with giant swells hitting the coast
There is not normally a ripple at Balmoral Beach or Shark Beach but surfers thrashed through three-to-four foot swell today whipped up by a low-pressure system off the east coast of Australia. SEE THE EPIC PICTURE GALLERY
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Sydney Harbour’s normally sleepy beaches were filled with grommets and veteran surfers this morning who were stoked on finding a novelty wave.
There is not normally a ripple at Balmoral Beach or Shark Beach but surfers thrashed through three-to-four foot swell on Tuesday.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Ashuang Wang said the harbour was buffeted with waves due to a big offshore swell which crashed from Kiama to Newcastle.
“The last several days we have had an east coast low developing offshore and when this low moves away from the coast it creates a lot of energy,” she said.
“On Monday evening we recorded 10 metre high swells off Sydney’s coast and on Tuesday morning around nine-metre high swells were recorded.
“There will still be dangerous surf conditions on Thursday. We are also expecting to have strong winds, around 25-40km/h, in Sydney, but less rain.”
Nick Blair, 42, was one of the first surfers in the water at Shark Beach on Tuesday.
He took the largest board he has, a McTavish longboard, and braved the chilly waters in hope of one of Sydney’s best novelty waves.
“The waves here only break once or twice a year, it has to be at least 10 foot off the coast if you are to have any chance of the swell coming around here,” he said.
“I was one of the first three people in the water this morning and by the time I left there were probably 20 or so people in the water. Most of the waves were three foot, from the back of the wave, but every now and then a four foot set would roll in.
“It was really fun. It’s this novelty you don’t normally get. I was amazed by the whole thing, at some points I was sitting on my board looking over at the waves breaking at Balmoral in disbelief.”
The huge swell has not been all fun and games.
There was a large police search overnight for a surfer who went missing at Coogee — who later called police to tell them he had gotten safely out of the water — and two teenagers injured at South Curl Curl beach pool.
The teenagers were taken to Royal North Shore Hospitals for treatment. One boy was struggling to remain conscious while the other complained about hip and leg pain.
Surf Life Saving NSW said the public needs to be careful as there will be dangerous conditions in the coming days.
‘During this extreme weather event we urge members of the public to stay away from the coastline and not to engage in risky coastal activities. If people put themselves in danger in these extreme conditions, there’s a real possibility that lifesavers will not be able to save them,’ SLS director Joel Wiseman said.