I looked at the result of (G2K) rendering of a table in my note (above) and found it unreadable. Let see if I could do better here:
A table for estimating wave size by wind speed
Conditions Necessary for a Fully Developed Sea at Given Wind Speeds, and the Parameters of the Resulting Waves
Wind Conditions Wave Size
Wind Speed in One Direction/ Fetch/ Wind Duration/ Average Height/ Average Wavelength/ Average Period / Speed (kph)
19 kph 19 km 2 hr 0.27 m 8.5 m 3.0 sec 2.83 m/sec (10.2 kph)
37 kph 139 km 10 hr 1.5 m 33.8 m 5.7 sec 5.94 m/sec (21.4 kph)
56 kph 518 km 23 hr 4.1 m 76.5 m 8.6 sec 8.90 m/sec (32.0 kph)
74 kph 1,313 km 42 hr 8.5 m 136.0 m 11.4 sec 11.91 m/sec (42.9 kph)
92 kph 2,627 km 69 hr 14.8 m 212.2 m 14.3 sec 14.84 m/sec (53.4 kph)
Now we can see that a day of 60 kph winds over the gulf of Thailand (as the fetch) can create 4+m waves (enough to go over the first floor of many beach houses) with the wave speed of 32 kph (imagine being hit by a slow running car). In herricans, wind speed are usually about 120-200 kph (off the scale in the table ;-); the gulf can provide the necessary 'fetch' (clear run);... So it is possible to have 15+m waves pounding coastal areas with speed 60+kph. What more if there is a high tide on a full moon day after a heavy rain... where high waves run into draining fresh water in opposing direction; both fronts have no where to go but up!