How to Determine the Surge Depth at a Beach

During a storm near a major body of water such as an ocean, much of the concern for safety is related to a storm surge, or storm tide. The storm surge is a way of describing the amount that the water level will increase due to wind and pressure. There are ways to determine the storm surge, but it would be very challenging to determine without special measuring and safety equipment, especially during a dangerous storm.

Things You'll Need

• Measuring device in feet
• Radio or Internet tuned to the National Weather Service

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Instructions

• 1

  Determine normal high tide for the location you wish to calculate storm surge for.

• 2

  Acquire the actual or expected storm tide level using a radio or computer with Internet connection. This will tell you how high the water is expected to reach, or is actually already reaching, during a storm.

• 3

  Subtract the normal high tide number from the storm tide level, ensuring they are both in the same unit (such as feet). This number is the expected storm surge, and can help determine how far inland the water will reach, and to what height.