Delaware, 1996

High Surf in Delaware, August 29 to 31, 1996

August 29 to 31, 1996 · NWS PHI · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Rough surf, associated with Hurricane Edouard affected the Delaware Coast around the Labor Day Weekend. The hurricane passed about 270 miles east of the Delaware Coast the evening of Sunday September 1st.

Where it happened

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The toll

Deaths
0
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 PHI wrote it up.

Rough surf, associated with Hurricane Edouard affected the Delaware Coast around the Labor Day Weekend. The hurricane passed about 270 miles east of the Delaware Coast the evening of Sunday September 1st. But, the roughest surf was experienced in August on the 30th and 31st with improving conditions the rest of the Labor Day Weekend. Most beaches were closed during the morning and early afternoon on Friday when the surf was the roughest. Bathing was permitted other times. The Indian River Inlet was closed due to rough surf the morning and early afternoon of the 31st. Tidal departures were only 1 to 2 feet above normal and only caused some minor tidal flooding near the times of high tide. Tower Beach Road was closed sporadically due to flooding within the Indian River Campground.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

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Event by event

1 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.

High Surf, Delaware Beaches

When
August 29, 12:00 PM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Delaware Beaches forecast zone
Coordinates
38.683, -75.339 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

High Surf
Large waves breaking on the shore that caused damage, erosion or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Delaware in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Delaware, August 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: 5571249.