Name: High Surf in California, November 7, 2002
Start: 2002-11-07T19:35
End: 2002-11-07T19:35
Location: California

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 forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Eureka, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 7, 7:30 PM PST, 5 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 7, 7:30 PM PST, 5 minutes before

NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
730 PM PST THU NOV 7 2002

ISSUED AN UPDATE EARLIER THIS EVENING AND ISSUED A HIGH WIND
WARNING. STRONG MOISTURE GRADIENT IN THE WATER VAPOR LOOP WAS
APPROACHING THE NORTH HALF OF MENDOCINO COUNTY THIS EVENING AND
EXPECT WIND TO INCREASE TO WARNING THRESHOLD AS THE FRONT EXIT
REGION OF 150KT JET APPROACHES. THE WIND WILL DIMINISH BELOW WARNING
THRESHOLD AROUND MIDNIGHT AS THE SUBSIDENCE AREA MOVES EAST. A
STRONG SQUALL WITH RATES NEAR 1/HR MOVED ASHORE LATE THIS AFTERNOON
AND TRAINING ECHOES HAVE DIMINISHED IN THE WAKE OF THE SQUALL. BHX
INDICATED MAX RAIN RATES IN SOUTHERN HUMBOLDT LAST HOUR .6/HR AND
WILL CONTINUE TO DIMINISH AS DRIER AIR UPSTREAM APPROACHES. PICTURES
FROM SPACE INDICATED A SMALL PVA COMMA CLOUD WITH ISOLATED
THUNDERSTORMS APPROACHING HUMBOLDT AND DEL NORTE AT 46KT AND RAIN
WILL INCREASE THIS HOUR WITH RAIN RATES INCREASING TO .5/HR FOR A
COUPLE OF HOURS THEN TAPER OFF AS THE BACK EDGE MOVES ASHORE IN
BEFORE MIDNIGHT. SWINEGUARD
POPS CEC +989 EKA +988 UKI +987

.EKA...GALE WARNING PT ST GEORGE TO PT ARENA OUT 60NM TONIGHT.
    ...HIGH SURF ADVISORY REDWOOD AND MENDOCINO COAST THROUGH SUN
       NIGHT.
    ...WIND ADVISORY SOUTHERN HALF MENDOCINO COAST..NORTHERN
       HUMBOLDT AND ENTIRE DEL NORTE COUNTIES TONIGHT.
    ...HIGH WIND WARNING NORTHERN MENDOCINO COAST AND SOUTHERN
       HUMBOLDT COUNTY TONIGHT.

Hazardous weather outlook, Nov 7, 5:45 AM PST, 13 hours 50 minutes before

CAZ001>004-076-080000-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
545 AM PST THU NOV 7 2002

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA

.DAY ONE...

A WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR THE REDWOOD COAST...NORTH
COAST INTERIOR...AND THE MENDOCINO COAST THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS
EVENING. SEE SFONPWEKA FOR DETAILS. A HIGH SURF ADVISORY CONTINUES IN
EFFECT FOR THE REDWOOD COAST...MENDOCINO COAST...AND ADJACENT COASTAL
WATERS THROUGH TONIGHT. SEE SFOMWSEKA FOR DETAILS.

.INSTRUCTIONS TO SPOTTERS...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

THE HIGH SURF ADVISORY CONTINUES IN EFFECT FOR THE REDWOOD
COAST...MENDOCINO COAST...AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS THROUGH SUNDAY
NIGHT. REFER TO SFOMWSEKA FOR DETAILS.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Nov 7, 4:04 PM PST, 3 hours 31 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CALIFORNIA
448 PM PST THU NOV 7 2002

TIME (PST) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

920 AM     HONEYDEW                  CA   WIND DAMAGE
11/07/02   Humboldt                       BROKEN TREE LIMBS.  3/4 INCH THICK.

1000 AM    GUALALA                   CA   WIND DAMAGE
11/07/02   Mendocino                      BROKEN TREE LIMBS.  10 INCH LIMB
                                          DOWN.

Local storm report, Nov 7, 4:48 PM PST, 2 hours 47 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CALIFORNIA
448 PM PST THU NOV 7 2002

TIME (PST) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

920 AM     HONEYDEW                  CA   WIND DAMAGE
11/07/02   Humboldt                       BROKEN TREE LIMBS.  3/4 INCH THICK.

1000 AM    GUALALA                   CA   WIND DAMAGE
11/07/02   Mendocino                      BROKEN TREE LIMBS.  10 INCH LIMB
                                          DOWN.

Event by event

1 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.

High Surf, Redwood Coast

When: November 7, 7:35 PM PST
Where: Redwood Coast forecast zone
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by: NEWSPAPER

A young boy was swept to sea by large surf while walking on the beach with his parents.

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
High Surf, Redwood Coast	2002-11-07	4	Male	Outside/Open Areas	Direct

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 California in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in California, November 2002

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: 5323415.