It happens a lot. I was amazed reading about people like that in the 1938 hurricane. All i can figure is that people washed off barrier islands in hurricanes find enough debris to ride on till they get to the mainland. Funny thing there too, they all seem to clump together on landing. Guess the current, even though hurricane-chaotic, takes them all the same general direction and dumps them off close by.
“... debris to ride on till they get to the mainland.”
It should be noted that swimmers on the other side of a hurricane will be going in the opposite direction, out to sea.