Abstract: The response of an idealized coastal ocean to traveling storms which move in different directions is studied. The results show that the surges near the shore are mainly caused by forcing waves. As for landing storms, the tidal change due to edge waves is produced in the place which is far way from the storm track. The amplitude of edge waves is much smaller than that of forcing waves in the case of straight coastline and two-dimensional shelf topography. The storm traveling along the coast causes forcing waves which move along the storm near the shore. If the storm moves in the same direction with Kelvin waves, shelf waves are stimulated; otherwise, there is no shelf waves. In addition, the offshore currents associated with storm surges are also analyzed.