Viral video shows surfboarder's wild ride on flooded Arkansas interstate: 'Surf's up in Jacksonville'
For Cabot, Arkansas, resident Blane Waggoner and his friends, a flooded I-57 in Jacksonville offered an unforgettable, albeit unconventional, way to enjoy the water in their home state.
Arkansas floods provide entertainment for enthusiastic surfboarder
Blane Waggoner's impressive surfboarding skills were on display in footage taken Sunday in Jacksonville, Arkansas, where he rode the wake behind a jet ski along I-57.
JACKSONVILLE, Ark. – What happens when torrential rain turns a major Arkansas interstate into a temporary waterway? For one outdoor enthusiast, it means it's time to grab a surfboard.
The familiar hum of highway traffic on Interstate 57 in Jacksonville was replaced by the splash of water and the roar of a jet ski engine as Blane Waggoner turned the flooded interstate into his personal surfing grotto.
FAMOUS BOURBON DISTILLERY SURROUNDED BY FLOODWATER AFTER KENTUCKY SEES MORE THAN A FOOT OF RAIN
Seeking an opportunity to surf despite recent Arkansas flooding, Blane Waggoner was filmed surfboarding with great flair behind a jet ski alongside I-57 in Jacksonville on Sunday.
(Blane Waggoner)
A now-viral video capturing Waggoner's effortless glide across the submerged asphalt has rapidly spread across social media as he turned a weather-related inconvenience into an extraordinary spectacle.
The scene unfolded about 2 p.m. Sunday as heavy rainfall caused significant flooding in the Jacksonville area. The FOX Forecast Center reported between 9 and 10 inches of rain fell in the city, of which over 5.5 inches fell last Saturday alone.
SEE IT: KENTUCKY MEN GO VIRAL AFTER BURYING MINIVAN TO USE AS STORM SHELTER DURING SEVERE WEATHER
Seeking an opportunity to surf despite recent Arkansas flooding, Blane Waggoner was filmed surfboarding with great flair behind a jet ski alongside I-57 in Jacksonville on Sunday.
(Blane Waggoner)
"When it floods in Arkansas … surf's up in Jacksonville," Waggoner exclaimed over the impromptu surfboarding session.
However, this seemingly unusual act wasn't entirely out of character for his group of friends who surf and surfboard year-round.
"I try to take a boat out anytime there is nice weather," he told FOX Weather. "This wasn’t too far out of the ordinary for me. It was a good excuse to get on a board."
SEE IT: BUILDING SPOTTED GETTING SWEPT DOWN SWOLLEN KENTUCKY RIVER
Seeking an opportunity to surf despite recent Arkansas flooding, Blane Waggoner was filmed surfboarding with great flair behind a jet ski alongside I-57 in Jacksonville on Sunday.
(Blane Waggoner)
Waggoner, who resides in Cabot, just a short drive from Jacksonville, runs a boat repair and sales shop specializing in wakeboard boats. He also offers surf, wakeboard and foil lessons during the summer months on his personal Malibu boat.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said President Donald Trump had approved Arkansas’ request for an Emergency Declaration for Direct Federal Assistance to assist with the state's response to storms, tornadoes and flooding that began on April 2.
"All that water we have received over the past several days will work its way into our major river systems," the National Weather Service in Little Rock said Monday, along with the latest forecast for points along the rivers. "These rivers are forecast to be in flood for quite a while."
At least two fatalities and a dozen injuries have been reported in Arkansas in connection to the ongoing severe weather event, including the death of a 5-year-old boy when a tree fell on his home in Little Rock.