Rip Current, Guayama
- When
- December 31, 4:00 PM AST to 5:00 PM AST
- Where
- Guayama County, Patillas
- Deaths
- 2 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
Rip Current in Puerto Rico, December 31, 1998
Two people drowned while swimming in Cortijo Beach in Patillas.
The toll
- Deaths
- 2
- 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 SJU wrote it up.
Two people drowned while swimming in Cortijo Beach in Patillas.
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, Guayama | 1998-12-31 | 39 | Male | In Water | Direct |
| Rip Current, Guayama | 1998-12-31 | 17 | 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
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, December 31, 1998
- Heavy Snow in New York, December 31, 1998
- Drought in New Jersey, December 31, 1998
- Heat in New Jersey, December 31, 1998
- Drought in Pennsylvania, December 31, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, December 31, 1998
- Winter Storm in Utah, December 31, 1998
- High Surf in Hawaii, December 31, 1998
- Lake-Effect Snow in Michigan, December 31, 1998
- Heat in Pennsylvania, December 31, 1998
- Drought in Maryland, December 31, 1998
- Drought in Delaware, December 31, 1998
More
Every storm in Puerto Rico in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Puerto Rico, December 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: 5674170.