Bae Cadotte, 47, was fishing south of Pacifica Pier when a sneaker wave struck and swept her about 30 feet offshore. A webcam captured the Tuesday incident, and fellow anglers pulled her back using a rope. She was taken to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hosp
On Tuesday, Bae Cadotte was fishing along the beach south of Pacifica Pier when the ocean turned on her in a heartbeat.
She says the wave didn’t feel like a normal swell. “It felt like I was tumbling in a washing machine,” Cadotte told MISRYOUM, describing how fast it came. “It just swallowed me. I knew at that point she came- I was going in. She’s going to get me. No way I’m getting out of this.”
A webcam captured the moment the sneaker wave struck and pulled her into the surf. Cadotte estimates she was dragged roughly 30 feet from shore. In the chaos, she said panic was the one thing she tried to avoid. “So I just went with it. I didn’t try to fight it- there’s no point in fighting a sneaker wave.”.
What made it terrifying, she said, was not just the force of the water but the thought of what she might leave behind. “I closed my eyes, I said a prayer- God, if this is your will, I understand, but please don’t let me leave my son.”
For several minutes, she said she remained in the water before resurfacing. Fellow anglers nearby rushed to help—throwing a rope and pulling her back to shore. Afterward, she told them, “Thanks for risking your life to save mine.”
First responders arrived shortly after and transported Cadotte to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, where she was treated for hypothermia. She is now recovering at home.
Her survival comes as the Bay Area’s coastline has seen another stretch of dangerous conditions this week. Hazardous coastal conditions and the risk of sneaker waves have been tied to a beach hazard statement that has been in effect across much of the Bay Area. warning of large swells and the risk of sneaker waves. Similar rescues have been reported in recent days.
On Thursday, a mother and daughter were pulled into the surf at Baker Beach in San Francisco, but they were rescued. Last week, two Bay Area college students died after being swept into the ocean in Santa Cruz.
The San Francisco Fire Department has urged beachgoers to stay alert, saying, “Never turn your back on the ocean,” in a social media post.
Cadotte says she hopes her close call becomes a warning that lands before someone else gets caught. “Just be safe out there,” she said. “Not a lot of people know about rip currents.”
Pacifica sneaker wave rip currents beach safety hypothermia Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital Pacifica Pier
Sneaker wave sounds made up, but glad she’s okay??
Wait she was fishing and the water just… grabbed her? 30 feet is insane. People really just underestimate the ocean like it’s some calm bathtub.
I read this like she got hit by like a rogue sneaker ad wave??? anyway rip currents are a real thing. Also why did she go back out there to fish after?? But glad they pulled her back with a rope, that part matters.
Never turn your back on the ocean… yeah okay but half the time people don’t even know what they’re looking at. They said it was a sneaker wave but I feel like it’s basically rip currents doing a jump scare. Two college kids died Santa Cruz last week so it’s clearly connected somehow (like the same weather system?) I dunno, I just stay away from the water when there’s those hazard statements.