Oregon, 1996

Waterspout in Oregon, September 15, 1996

September 15, 1996 · NWS PQR · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A cold, unstable airmass moved over Oregon and produced widespread convective showers over Northwestern Oregon. A waterspout formed off the North Oregon Coast near Seaside.

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

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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 PQR wrote it up.

A cold, unstable airmass moved over Oregon and produced widespread convective showers over Northwestern Oregon. A waterspout formed off the North Oregon Coast near Seaside.

The radar

The Portland,OR radar (KRTX), 67 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:15 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 waterspout. Local standard time, as filed.

Waterspout, Clatsop

When
September 15, 5:13 PM PST to 5:20 PM PST
Where
Clatsop County, 10 mi NW of Seaside
Coordinates
46.018, -123.717 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Waterspout
A tornado over water. One that moves ashore is filed as a tornado from the coastline on.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Oregon in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, September 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: 5572322.