Riiiide the Tsunami

While trying to weather toothache so strong that it actively messes with my vision, I find I tend to assume I'm projecting a meaning that hasn't really been written into the page before me.
Reading about conditions in Moloka'i (one of the least touristed islands I can find in Hawaii), I came across How To Recognise: A Flash Flood:

rise in stream level, and in speed of flow;
distant rumbling;
smell of fresh earth.

So far, so good. Logical, clear. Almost evocative, in fact.

Read a little further, and there's How To Recognise: A Tsunami:

The State of Hawaii has developed a warning system to advise the public if a tsunami is coming.
NEVER GO DOWN TO THE SHORE to watch for a tsunami.
If you can see the wave, you are too close to escape it.
Never try to surf a tsunami; tsunami’s do not curl or break like surfing waves.

Now, I may be green, but if you're going to try to surf a tsunami, surely your death is a mere evolutionary footnote?