Wind setup, also known as wind effect or storm effect, refers to the rise in water level in seas or lakes caused by winds pushing the water in a specific direction. As the wind moves across the water's surface, it applies a shear stress to the water, prompting the formation of a wind-driven current. When this current encounters a shoreline, the water level along the shore increases, generating a hydrostatic counterforce in equilibrium with the shear force.
Effect of wind setup during Hurricane Katrina in 2005
Observation of wind setup in Vlissingen in 1953
A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the normal tidal level, and does not include waves.
Hurricane Ike storm surge damage in Gilchrist, Texas in 2008.
Total destruction of the Bolivar Peninsula (Texas) by Hurricane Ike's storm surge in September 2008