Hurricane Erin is due east of West Palm Beach now.
Giant closeouts this evening in Boca Raton. Not rideable.
Boca Raton, FL Palmetto Park Road Pavilion (South Beach Park).
Some waves either snuck through the Bahamas or they’re wrapping around the islands.
Interesting that this size at the same time is NOT hitting Palm Beach, Singer Island, Jupiter, and further north of Ft. Pierce.
Be careful out there. If you’re not a serious experienced surfer, don’t go in the water deeper than ankle deep. The currents, waves, and runouts are now extreme.
Inexperienced surfers should stay out of the surf too. I saw several surfers paddling out upcoast today and they had a “come-get-me-stroke.”
See the live beach webcams on my webpage on Brownie Bytes to see the surf and conditions:
Latest: Klyuchevskoy Volcano in Russia Starts Erupting
The Klyuchevskoy volcano on the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia’s far east has started erupting after Wednesday’s powerful earthquake in the Pacific, Russian state news agency RIA reported, according to Reuters.
The volcano is known to be the tallest active volcano in Eurasia.
The massive quake struck on Wednesday morning in Russia, generating a tsunami of up to 4 metres (13ft) on the country’s east coast, damaging buildings and prompting evacuation warnings in the region and across most of Japan’s east coast, officials said.
First the 8.8 Earthquake
A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula triggered tsunami waves of up to 5 metres (16 feet) nearby and sparked evacuation orders as far away as Hawaii and across the Pacific on Wednesday.
Historic Earthquakes Shows this 8.8 is a Big One – Image: Guardian Graphic
The tsunami wave swept away buildings on the coastal area of Severo-Kurilsk, the main settlement on Russia’s Kuril Islands in the Pacific. The regional authorities declared a state of emergency but mayor Alexander Ovsyannikov said all residents were safe and had been evacuated. The country’s emergency ministry said parts of the town had been flooded. The tsunami alert was later cancelled in Russia’s Severo-Kurilsk, state-owned Tass news agency reports.
More than two million people were evacuated in Japan, including workers at the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant in northeast Japan, who were evacuated, with plant operator Tepco saying that “no abnormality” had been observed at the site.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said initial reports indicate no safety impact for nuclear power plants along the Pacific Coast, Reuters reports
Japan later lifted all tsunami warnings, downgrading them to a tsunami advisory, Reuters reports, citing the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Broadcaster Asahi TV reported a 58-year-old woman died when her car fell off a cliff while she was evacuating in central Japan’s Mie prefecture, Reuters reports.
Hawaii downgraded its tsunami warning to advisory and lifted its evacuation order with people able to return to their homes.
The Klyuchevskoy volcano on the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia’s far east has started erupting after Wednesday’s powerful earthquake in the Pacific, Russian state news agency RIA reported, according to Reuters.
Authorities in Central and South America have ordered evacuations and issued tsunami warnings.
Tsunami waves began hitting the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia early on Wednesday, but the waves were forecast to be smaller than initially feared, local authorities said.
The National Tsunami Warning Centre (NTWC) said a tsunami advisory has been cancelled for coastal areas of south Alaska, the Alaska peninsula and the Aleutian Islands from Chignik Bay, Alaska to the Samalga Pass.
The NTWC said a tsunami advisory has been cancelled for the coastal areas of British Columbia from the Washington/British Columbia border to the British Columbia/Alaska border. A tsunami advisory is now cancelled for American Samoa, Reuters reports.
Seaweed is invading South Florida beaches again this summer. From Miami Beach to Ft. Pierce, Florida, the sargassum bloom has impacted beaches with up to shin deep stinky weed.
Click images to enlarge:
Boca Raton InletPalmetto Park Rd. Boca RatonBoca Raton InletBoynton Inlet
It’s caused by fertilizer runoff and pollution in the Atlantic Ocean and greatly impacts the Caribbean and Florida beaches. Since I reported on the first major Sargassum Seaweed bloom over 10 years ago, we’ve had a couple times that was almost this bad. Hopefully it won’t get as bad as the first:
The Pinellas Sheriff’s Office shared a warning on June 15 after receiving numerous calls about groups of manatees gathering together
By Kelli Bender Published on June 18, 2025 07:30PM EDT
Manatee Mating
If you see the manatees rocking through the waves, don’t come knocking on the Pinellas Sheriff’s Office’s door.
The Florida sheriff’s office shared an unusual warning about the animals on Instagram on June 15. The post includes a video showing a clump of manatees closely gathered together on the shore of a Florida beach. At least 10 manatees swim over and near each other in the footage.
According to the post, this type of bizarre-looking manatee gathering is common in the summer, and no cause for alarm. The marine mammals are getting together for an NSFW reason, per the Pinellas Sheriff’s Office.
“If you see this … no, you didn’t,” the sheriff’s office wrote on the manatee video. “Don’t call us. They are more than fine. It’s mating season.”
Pinellas Sheriff’s Office provided more context in the caption alongside the manatee footage.
“We get calls all the time from citizens when they see this, believing the manatees are in distress. We can assure you they are more than fine,” the agency wrote, adding, “Manatees actually mate in herds like these, and often they are near the shore. They mate all throughout the year, but generally, mating herds like these are seen in the summer months.”
By HOLLY RAMER and RODRIQUE NGOW I Updated 12:47 PM EDT, April 30, 2025
ROCKPORT, Mass. (AP) — Rockport residents have a history of fighting off invaders, but not this time.
During the War of 1812, townsfolk in the tiny fishing village hurled rocks at British soldiers using their stockings as slings. Now, they’re slinging trash bags and towels over the side mirrors of their cars to protect them from a destructive and determined pileated woodpecker.
Over the last few weeks, the bird has broken more than two dozen mirrors and at least one vehicle’s side window. But residents are taking the violence in stride.
“Everybody’s having a good laugh about it,” said Ben Favaloro. “Nobody wants harm to the bird. He’s always welcome back.”
Aug. 7 (UPI) — Hank the Tank, a large black bear responsible for at least 21 home break-ins in South Lake Tahoe, is on her way to a Colorado wildlife sanctuary after California officials captured her and three cubs.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife transported the bear, identified officially as 64F, to The Wild Animal Sanctuary near Springfield, Colo., on Monday after a veterinary check, CDFW spokesperson Jordan Traverso told UPI in an email.
Biologists captured the bear Friday along with three cubs, the department said in a news release. The cubs may be relocated to Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue.
“The cubs were safely transported to Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue,” Traverso said. “The goal is to rehabilitate them. The time that can take varies. They will continue to be assessed to make sure they’ll make it in the wild before they would be released.”
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