Ohio Surfers Find Only Benefit From Intense Storms Brought by Hurricane Helene

Surfers in Ohio were about the only people to find a benefit from Hurricane Helene.

Ohio local Joseph Gerin surfing waves in his home state. / Mandatory Credit - Joseph Gerin GoPro Footage Screenshot via The Inertia

Hurricane Helene changed the lives of so many people in the southeast United States. Intense rainfall led to damaging flooding, as entire towns were submerged in water. Hundreds of people were reported missing, which will likely turn into a death toll of a few hundred people.

Along the East Coast of the United States, there were some intense waves created in the Atlantic Ocean because of the storm. It first made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend before moving north, crushing parts of the Appalachian Trail, with North Carolina being among the hardest hit areas.

People up north could only watch on in horror, hoping that people were able to find a way to stay safe. Emergency supplies were airlifted to remote areas that were difficult to reach.

Some 800 miles north of where the most damage was done, Ohio surfers were able to find one positive out of the devastating caused. Their normally smooth waters with zero waves were going to provide an opportunity to get some action around the shores of Lake Erie.

“We have buoys on the Great Lakes and one was reading at six-and-a-half to seven feet at six seconds,” said Cleveland surfer Joseph Gerin, as shared by Evan Quarnstrom of The Inertia. “All that wind on the lake was (coming from a) direction that had the right amount of fetch.”

The 28-year-old learned to surf 12 years ago while visiting Virginia Beach. Hurricane Helene was national news for days, as he followed along closely with the forecast and predictions about the path it would take.

The buoy readings were proving forecasts to be correct. Gerin knew it would be worth checking out.

“Cleveland got waves, but I went about 30 miles west for some bigger waves with more fetch,” said Gerin. “The specific spot I went to on that kind of wind really picks up swell. My friend said it was good, but I got out there late (because of work). It was just me and a handful of other guys who were aware of some of the lesser-known spots around the lake. I went out but it was completely a washing machine, a blown-out mess. So, instead, I went to a spot right next to downtown Cleveland that had more protection from all the chaos. It was definitely a longboard wave, but it still had some height to it, about chest high maybe. There must have been at least 35 people in the water at one point.”

“The second day cleaned up and that’s where I got pretty good POV (GoPro) footage of some decent lefts that were about chest to head high,” Gerin continued, adding that he didn’t want to argue wave height with ocean surfers. “The crowd was just me and a couple of buddies. It went from 35 people the previous day to just three or four.”

Surfing in Ohio can be limited. Given how cold it gets and if the lake freezes, there could be anywhere from 50 to 100 surf days in a year shared the Ohio local.

A dedicated surf community has been present in the Cleveland area for about 60 years, but in the last 10, Gerin has noticed it is really growing. Now is a very popular time in the fall, with water temperatures still being in the 70s.