Rip Current, Baldwin
- When
- October 12, 10:30 AM CST to 11:30 AM CST
- Where
- Baldwin County, Orange Beach
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Coordinates
- 30.661, -87.750 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Rip Current in Alabama, October 12, 1996
Several people were swimming in rough surf in the Gulf of Mexico near the Alabama 161 overlook. One of the swimmers was pulled under by the rough surf and drowned.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS MOB wrote it up.
Several people were swimming in rough surf in the Gulf of Mexico near the Alabama 161 overlook. One of the swimmers was pulled under by the rough surf and drowned. It took almost an hour to recover the 19 year old male.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rip Current, Baldwin | 1996-10-12 | 19 | Male | In Water | Direct |
What these are
- Rip Current
- A narrow, fast current flowing away from the beach that caused a drowning or rescue.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
More
Every storm in Alabama in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, October 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5574719.