Marine High Wind in California, December 2, 1996

Name: Marine High Wind in California, December 2, 1996
Start: 1996-12-02T12:55
End: 1996-12-02T12:55
Location: California

December 2, 1996 · NWS EKA · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Heavy seas capsized a fishing vessel off of Fern Canyon when it was caught abeam by a large wave. Two crew members were rescued but one drown.

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 2
Property damage: $50,000
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 EKA wrote it up.

Heavy seas capsized a fishing vessel off of Fern Canyon when it was caught abeam by a large wave. Two crew members were rescued but one drown.

Event by event

1 marine high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Marine High Wind, Redwood Coast

When: December 2, 12:55 PM PST
Where: Redwood Coast forecast zone
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $50,000

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
Marine High Wind, Redwood Coast	1996-12-02	35	Male	Boat	Direct

What these are

Marine High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 48 knots or more over water.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in California in 1996 Every state in 1996 This day in weather history Warnings in California, December 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5579216.