A US military base was pummeled with rogue waves from a storm surge on the Marshall Islands

Shocking viral video captured heavy flooding on the US military base around 9 p.m. Saturday night.

A surge of water broke down the front doors of a local restaurant, the Outrigger Bar and Grill, flooding the building and causing some people inside to lose their footing under the waves.

Erik Hanson, a scuba instructor on the Marshall Islands, posted the video on Instagram, saying the flooding was caused by a "combination of wind, tides, and swell direction."

"Get out of here," a voice on the video is heard saying before the lights in the building cut out.

The flooding appeared to be caused by rare "rogue waves," according to CNN's meteorologist Robert Shackelford. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration describes a rogue wave as "steep-sided with unusually deep troughs," and reports say they look like "walls of water."

"The impacts of these waves are also more strongly felt across low-lying islands, which includes the Marshall Islands," Shackelford said, adding that the climate crisis is rising sea levels that, in turn, expose more areas to storm surge.

Aircrews assessed the damage on the island from above, posting the video to the base's Facebook page showing the water inundating the northwest side of Roi-Namur.

At least a third of the island was covered in water.

Runways were covered with water, and buildings — including the base's housing, dining facilities, outdoor theater, military retail store, and church — were damaged in the flood.

All of the automotive warehouse complex also remains underwater.

In a video posted to Facebook on Monday, Col. Drew Morgan, commander of US Army Garrison-Kwajalein Atoll, said the north point of Roi-Namur was hit with "a series of unpredicted, gigantic waves" that caused "extensive damage" and a few minor injuries.

About 80 personnel on the island were evacuated following the surge. A team of 60 remain to continue to assess the damage and start restoring utilities.

"Clearing the runway on Roi-Namur and assessing its safety is our top priority now that we have evacuated personnel not required for the initial response efforts," Morgan said in a statement. "Once the runway is open, we can move people and equipment back and forth to start the recovery process."

Morgan said the recovery efforts could take "months or even years" to complete as crews continue to assess the damage from over the weekend.

"This is going to go down in Kwaj's history books as one of its most challenging times ever in its 80-year history," he said.

"Remember, we are important to our nation's security, and this is our home," he continued. "We're showing the world that we are truly one team."