Photo of waves crashing over Outer Banks pier goes viral – but it’s not real

A photo of monstrous waves crashing over an Outer Banks pier went viral on Monday – but it’s fake.

The photo of Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head was posted by Facebook user Alex Lex, an Outer Banks photographer on Monday with the caption “Hurricane Jose's 30ft waves hit the Jennette's pier 9/18/2017 Nags Head, NC.”

But the photo isn’t real, and it’s not the first photo illustration Alex Lee has posted. Many of the photographer’s posts include photos that show real scenes from the Outer Banks, with other, unrealistic elements added.

Jennette’s Pier posted to its Facebook page on Tuesday to confirm that the photo wasn’t real and to share actual photos of the rough surf from Hurricane Jose.

“Hurricane Jose – The worst of the storm is brushing past the Outer Banks and we're experiencing high winds, waves and ocean over wash in several places along N.C. 12 in Nags Head,” pier officials wrote Tuesday. “Ocean waves are not, however, crashing over the end of the pier as portrayed on social media by a local photographer.”

The photo illustration had been shared more than 116,000 times, had more than 19,000 reactions and more than 8,500 comments as of Tuesday evening.

This story was originally published September 19, 2017 at 8:25 PM with the headline "Photo of waves crashing over Outer Banks pier goes viral – but it’s not real."