As Hurricane Erin sends waves up and down the East Coast, serving up a total feast for otherwise starved surfers, certain areas in Delaware and Maryland have blocked beach access and prohibited surfing for the last two days.
A trusted source tipped off SURFER with the following information, “Local officials in Ocean City, MD, state and federal officials at Assateague Island, and several Delaware beach towns have issued a ban on surfing this week, even before the first swells from Hurricane Erin reach the Mid-Atlantic coastline. Ocean City MD Beach Patrol announced the surfing restrictions on Tuesday, which was two days before any massive wind and wave conditions were forecast to arrive.”
Local surfers were upset with the ban as they are usually permitted in the water even when swimmers are not. “As East Coast surfers, we wait all year to surf tropical swells,” said local resident and business owner Will Hall. “It’s outrageous that Ocean City has chosen to ban surfing. I understand that tourists shouldn’t be swimming in these conditions, but this is what surfers live for…”
Will Go
Gasp(!) is right, even as I sit thousands of miles away in California I’m outraged at the fact that fellow surfers are being barred from enjoying what’s barely chest-high surf. This is apparently the first time that the public authorities have decided to ban surfing–something that has been allowed in past years in far bigger hurricane swells.
Our source added, “Most of the beaches around here regulate surfing in the summer by not allowing surfers between 10am and 5:30 PM to allow the tourists to have the right away in the ocean. Surfers have always looked forward to these hurricane days when the beaches get modified and swimmers are restricted, but surfing is allowed all day. That is what usually happens, however, they decided to surprise everyone and restrict surfing along with all beach activity.”
Related: 106,700 kJ of Wave Energy Produced by Hurricane Erin