An unexpected culprit toppled beach chairs along the sand at normally calm Clearwater Beach, Florida, last Wednesday. West Coast surfers might snicker at the cause, but the National Weather Service confirms the rare 4-foot (1.2 meter) wave was caused by a kind of tsunami, just not the kind you usually hear about.
Unlike tsunamis that are created by seismic activity, meteotsunamis are caused by strong gusting winds. Water levels peaked at around four feet as the storms hit Florida's coast.
An unexpected culprit toppled beach chairs along the sand at normally-calm Clearwater Beach, Florida on June 21. West Coast surfers might snicker at the