New Jersey, 1996

High Surf in New Jersey, August 29 to 31, 1996

August 29 to 31, 1996 · NWS PHI · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Rough surf, associated with Hurricane Edouard affected the New Jersey Coast around the Labor Day Weekend and caused two drownings and one serious injury. A 71-year-old man drowned the afternoon of the 29th when his boat capsized in the Great Egg Harbor Inlet off of Longport.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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

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The toll

Deaths
2
Injuries
1
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

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 New Jersey Coast around the Labor Day Weekend and caused two drownings and one serious injury. A 71-year-old man drowned the afternoon of the 29th when his boat capsized in the Great Egg Harbor Inlet off of Longport. A 28-year-old man drowned on the 30th while surfing in Lavallette. A 44-year-old Ocean City man was seriously injured the same day after a wave flipped him off his body board and he landed head first in the sand. The hurricane passed about 250 miles east of Atlantic City the evening of Sunday September 1st. But, the roughest surf generally occurred on the 30th with slow improvement over the rest of the Labor Day Weekend. Most beaches were either closed or had bathing restrictions throughout the weekend. Beach patrols reported that the busiest day for rescues was Friday the 30th. Many had to perform no rescues at all on Sunday September 1st. Tidal departures were only 1 to 2 feet above normal with no reports of tidal flooding. The highest winds were less than 30 mph.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.

High Surf, Eastern Cape May

When
August 29, 12:00 PM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Eastern Cape May forecast zone
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates
39.085, -74.850 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Surf, Eastern Atlantic

When
August 29, 12:00 PM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Eastern Atlantic forecast zone
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates
39.469, -74.634 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Surf, Eastern Ocean

When
August 29, 12:00 PM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Eastern Ocean forecast zone
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates
39.866, -74.250 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Surf, Eastern Monmouth

When
August 29, 12:00 PM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Eastern Monmouth forecast zone
Coordinates
40.288, -74.158 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
High Surf, Eastern Atlantic1996-08-2971MaleBoatDirect
High Surf, Eastern Ocean1996-08-3028MaleIn WaterDirect

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 New Jersey in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5571250, 5571251, 5571252, 5571253.