A 25-year-old man died after a struggle against currents while surfing a popular tidal bore in Alaska on Friday, June 19. The wave, formed by high tides rushing into the narrow Turnagain Arm southeast of Anchorage, has gone viral on social media as YouTubers like Jamie O’Brien, Blair Conklin, and Ben Gravy have posted videos riding the bore.
The victim was Joshua Novakovich, an Anchorage local, who was riding a stand-up paddleboard with his girlfriend. According to an article in the Anchorage Daily News, witnesses watched the tragedy unfold as Novakovich struggled to paddle back to shore against the rushing tide.
A visiting surfer from Hawaii, Tom Cozad, told the Anchorage Daily News that around two-dozen people were riding the wave that evening. Cozad was traveling with a local guide who said the sandbar that Novakovich was standing on was a dangerous spot. After watching him struggle for 20 minutes, onlookers called emergency services.
According to a Facebook post of a family member, Novakovich was on the phone with his father and girlfriend throughout the ordeal. The girlfriend had reportedly also been riding the wave, but was able to reach the shore. The strong currents and wind made it impossible for Novakovich to paddle the 1.5 miles to shore. The family member says Novakovich succumbed to hypothermia and was too weak to raise a hand to aid rescuers in spotting him. A pilot spotted the body the following day.
“He loved life, his family, and everything associated with Alaska,” the post reads. “We will miss him forever, but every beauty we see in nature will remind us of him and the knowledge that he’s close by, smiling and happy.”
A Facebook comment from the victim’s father said that onlookers stayed overnight searching the shoreline for Novakovich. He said the air rescue response was delayed because Alaska State Troopers wouldn’t fly after dark, and the crew had reached their limit of “fatigue hours.” The coast guard, he said, later dispatched a helicopter that arrived around 1:30 a.m.
The tragedy serves as a reminder of the dangers of surfing tidal bores, despite how easily professionals make it appear on social media. Antony Walsh recently survived a 38-second hold-down at a tidal bore in Australia.
