Florida, 1999

Rip Current in Florida, May 31, 1999

May 31, 1999 · NWS MFL · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A 60-year old Miami Beach resident drowned in a rip current in the Atlantic off 68th Street. Dozens of other bathers were rescued along Dade and Broward county Atlantic beaches over the entire Memorial Day Weekend as east winds of 20 mph predominated.

Where it happened

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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 MFL wrote it up.

A 60-year old Miami Beach resident drowned in a rip current in the Atlantic off 68th Street. Dozens of other bathers were rescued along Dade and Broward county Atlantic beaches over the entire Memorial Day Weekend as east winds of 20 mph predominated.

The radar

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

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Event by event

1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.

Rip Current, Miami-Dade

When
May 31, 1:15 PM EST
Where
Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
25.609, -80.499 (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
Rip Current, Miami-Dade1999-05-3160MaleIn WaterDirect

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

More

Every storm in Florida in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, May 1999

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: 5690406.