Rip Current, Guam
- When
- August 29, 4:05 PM SST to 6:17 PM SST
- Where
- Guam County, Ritidian Point
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
Rip Current in Guam, August 29, 1998
A man, Herlin Honik, 36, was spear fishing with three other relatives near a rocky channelnear the Guam National Wildlife office at Ritidian Point. Honik was in the water when he noticedthat one of his relatives was having trouble in the water.
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 GUA wrote it up.
A man, Herlin Honik, 36, was spear fishing with three other relatives near a rocky channelnear the Guam National Wildlife office at Ritidian Point. Honik was in the water when he noticedthat one of his relatives was having trouble in the water. He tried to rescue that person, who eventuallymade it back to shore. The relatives contacted the assistant manager of the refuge, Mike Ritter, at 1615 toget help. Rescue crews arrived 10 minutes later. A HC-5 helicopter joined several Guam rescue units. Two fire fighter rescue divers found Honik's body at 1817, there were no signs of life.
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, Guam | 1998-08-29 | 36 | 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
- Damaging Wind in Arizona, August 29, 1998
- Tornado and Damaging Wind in Texas, August 29, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Texas, August 29, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Texas, August 29, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Texas, August 29, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Louisiana, August 29, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Texas, August 29, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Louisiana, August 29, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Texas, August 29, 1998
- Heavy Rain in Massachusetts, August 29, 1998
- Hail in Alabama, August 29, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Texas, August 29, 1998
More
Every storm in Guam in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Guam, August 1998
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: 5678086.