Visitors and residents visiting Tybee Island ahead of Ian

TYBEE, Ga. (WTOC) - The City of Tybee closed the water to swimmers Thursday ahead of Ian.

There have been a number of curious visitors to the beach and a mix of locals and visitors, just wanting to catch a glimpse of what Mother Nature is serving up right now.

One couple from the Midwest says this was their first time to the beach seeing these kinds of conditions.

“Day two I felt like we were back in tornado alley, trying to go to the grocery, get things ready in case we can’t leave the house. It’s been a little bit of a shift of the vacation, but actually very enjoyable,” Tybee Vistor Andrew Pecore said.

The whitecaps have been much larger than you’d normally see, and it’s been interesting to see even as the tide has gone out, just how much the wind still pushes the water up on the beach.

Amid the giant waves and sand blowing all around…a proposal.

The couple, Julie and Ryan, after she said yes, of course, said this trip had been planned for over a year so even though a storm was a possibility, they came any way visiting from St. Louis.

They said they had one nice beach day before the started to feel Ian’s impact but he still wanted to propose like they say, when you know, you know.

“Been in the works and I thought for sure I wanted to this weekend, being out of town here in Savannah it was the best time to do it and the only time to do it and I figured if we could weather this storm, we could weather anything, right?” said Ryan Hedges.

They say they’re supposed to head back home tomorrow and what a memorable trip this will be.