A video highlighting the sheer magnitude and ocean-like look of Lake Michigan has gone viral on TikTok.
The clip, posted by @michaelmelstrom_, has amassed 7.2 million views since it was shared on November 28 last year. A note overlaid on the video says: "When people don't understand how big Lake Michigan is."
The camera pans across a view of waves on the lake as seen from inside a large living room with a dining area, surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass windows.
A caption shared with the post simply says: "Like an ocean :) #lakemichigan #lake."
Newsweek has contacted the original poster for comment via TikTok and email. The video has not been independently verified.
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes that are situated around the U.S.-Canada border. The others are Lakes Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario. With a combined area of about 94,250 square miles, the Great Lakes form the largest surface of fresh water in the world, spanning an area that's larger than the United Kingdom.
Lake Michigan is the third largest of the Great Lakes and the only one that sits entirely within the United States. About 12 million people live along the lake's shores, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's website.
"Dangerous currents and breaking waves are common in the Great Lakes region," says the Great Lakes Water Safety Consortium, and "rip currents and other currents found near piers are extremely dangerous for swimmers and can lead to drownings."
The consortium also says: "Structural currents are dangerous on their own, but when paired with others like longshore or rip currents, and when colliding with incoming waves, the combination can create a washing machine effect, moving the swimmer from one dangerous current area to another with no clear path to safety."
People are advised to "steer clear of the pier" and avoid jumping off or swimming near piers because "the currents found along these structures are often dangerously strong," the consortium says.
'So Scary'
TikTokers were amazed by the view of Lake Michigan captured in the viral clip.
User @hannahdelaneyy8 said, "It has waves wow," and ncokojxwbvaj asked, "That's a lake......????"
User tinkerbell asked, "How is that NOT the ocean?" and ilycia Marie said, "Yeah no that's a mini ocean."
Lils wrote, "It's so scary tho," and timmybarnacles said, "This freaks me out."
"I tell people it's like an ocean and no one believes it," said aidan lane.
User @lilbabyy.h wrote: "I flew over it and it legit looks like an ocean."
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