A wave does not have to come from a hurricane or major storm to become dangerous.
Along the Texas coast, enormous vessels move through ship channels every day, and anglers and boaters have reported encounters with massive, unexpected waves in areas influenced by heavy ship traffic.
I know because I have experienced one myself.
Several years ago, I investigated this phenomenon for my Dark Outdoors podcast after my own frightening encounter on Sabine Lake and hearing reports from other fishermen who had experienced enormous waves in Texas bays and ship channels. And recently video filmed of a terrifying encounter at the Texas City Dike has sparked conversation about this issue.
The episode, “Ship Channel Tsunamis: Terrifying Tales of Rogue Waves in Texas Bays,” features firsthand accounts from fishermen who encountered these waves, including reports of a 10-foot wave moving across a bay and a wall of water estimated at 15 feet striking a boat.
Listen to the Dark Outdoors investigation:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/45m89fzHpd6kjLYD7OTuXw?si=xuuAY3MqTweSICa6dqshQA
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ship-channel-tsunamis-terrifying-tales-of-rogue/id1630809603?i=1000576739898
Have a story to share? Email Chester at Chester@ChesterMoore.com.
Now I want to take the investigation much further.
I am beginning work on a documentary examining dangerous wave encounters in and around ship channels, bays and other heavily traveled waterways. I want to hear from the people who have actually experienced them.
Have you ever been hit by an unexpectedly large wave while fishing or boating near a ship channel? Have you seen a ship wake swamp or nearly swamp a boat? Have you experienced a dramatic rise or fall in water associated with a passing ship? Have you witnessed an accident, lost equipment, suffered boat damage or had a close call that could have ended in tragedy?
If so, I want to hear your story.
I am particularly interested in incidents involving the Houston Ship Channel, Galveston Bay, Sabine-Neches Waterway and Sabine Lake, but reports from anywhere along the Texas coast are welcome. I am also interested in similar experiences elsewhere along the Gulf Coast.
The goal of the documentary is not simply to collect frightening stories. I want to examine how frequently these incidents are occurring, where they are happening, what conditions seem to be involved and what anglers and boaters can learn from people who have survived them.
Some incidents may involve wakes directly associated with large vessels. Others may involve unusual combinations of vessel traffic, currents, water displacement, wind, bottom contours or other factors. Part of this project will be separating what we know from what we don’t and examining these events as closely as possible.
Documentation is extremely valuable.
If you have photographs, video, Coast Guard or law-enforcement reports, news coverage, damage photographs or other documentation connected with an incident, please mention that when contacting me. Firsthand accounts without documentation are welcome as well.
I am especially interested in hearing about incidents where someone was injured, thrown from a boat, swamped, capsized or came dangerously close to losing their life.
There may be far more of these encounters than most people realize, and that’s one of the things I hope to determine.
If enough people come forward, their experiences could help identify patterns and potentially provide information that keeps another angler, boater or family from being caught completely unprepared.
If you have experienced one of these waves, I want to hear from you.
Email Chester@ChesterMoore.com with the approximate location and date of the incident, what happened, what you observed before and after the wave arrived and whether photographs, video or other documentation exists.
Put “SHIP CHANNEL WAVE” in the subject line so I can easily identify submissions connected with this investigation.
Your experience could become part of the upcoming documentary—and it could help another boater understand a danger they never knew existed.
The water does not always give you much warning.
Sometimes the first warning is the wall of water headed your way.