Note: This post includes a video that can be disturbing to some viewers.

BEACHES -- Ocean surf whipped to a froth by winter storms on the coasts of Washington and Oregon are awe-inspiring sights that attract tourists to the beaches. But the sights can turn deadly.

The deaths of a man and boy last weekend on the Oregon coast off Cape Blanco is redoubling the efforts of public safety officials to educate the public.

One moment, Jayson Thomas was on the Oregon beach with his 3-year-old son. The next, they were gone, swept away by a "sneaker wave" as his wife looked on, the Associated Pres reports. The man and his boy were but the latest to be lost to a sneaker wave. These out-of-nowhere, random monster waves are prevalent in the Pacific Northwest.

Experts say greater awareness is needed to prevent future tragedies.

While the weather might be fine, a storm far out to sea, even across the Pacific, can generates an abnormally big wave. As it moves through the broad surf zone and over the gentle slope approaching Oregon's coast, one wave can catch up with another, combining forces and allowing it to run up further on the beach, said Tuba Ozkan-Haller, who is with Oregon State Univeristy's College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences.

Six years ago, a sneaker wave knocked two high school students from Eugene off a rock near Yachats, sending them into the turbulent waters where they drowned.

• Read more on the story from the Associated Press here.

Meanwhile, the disturbing video below is one of many posted on you tube showing how a sneaker wave can catch unwary beach visitors. The big one moves in at 30 seconds into the video.