Rip Current in Guam, August 10, 2003

Name: Rip Current in Guam, August 10, 2003
Start: 2003-08-10T12:00
End: 2003-08-10T13:00
Location: Guam

August 10, 2003 · NWS GUA · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Four people got caught in strong rip currents in Saipan. Three boys tried to rescue a tourist who was swept up in strong currents and in the end they became swept up in these currents too.

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 GUA wrote it up.

Four people got caught in strong rip currents in Saipan. Three boys tried to rescue a tourist who was swept up in strong currents and in the end they became swept up in these currents too. 36 year old Japanese tourist Suzuki Shizuka was swimming near Aquarius Hotel beach side at about 1200 when the strong currents drove her to deep water outside the reef line. Shizuka tried to swim back but was unable to get into the shallow water so she shouted for help. Three boys, two 13 year olds and one 12 year old, were in the area and they jumped into the water to rescue her. The boys and the tourist could not get back to the shore because of the strong current. The four, however, managed to hold onto a buoy until two men on jet skis arrived to rescue them. Saipan Watercraft jet ski operators Martin Landon and Joe Nekefes heard the call for help of the four victims. Department of Public Safety spokesmen Jason Tarkong said that although the minors were not able to leave the water due to strong currents, they were able to help the tourist and prevented her from drowning and being dragged out to the open sea. Department of Public Safety officers and medics also arrived and assisted the victims, who were all found to be in good health. The strong currents were caused by long period swells generated Typhoon Etau, which moved through the Western Pacific during the first week of August.

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 GUA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 10, 4:06 AM SST, 7 hours 54 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 10, 4:06 AM SST, 7 hours 54 minutes before

AREA SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TIYAN GU
1 AM GUAM LST MON AUG 11 2003

WESTERN NORTH PACIFIC BETWEEN EQUATOR AND 25N FROM 130E TO 180.

SURFACE WIND FLOW CONVERGENCE COMBINED WITH FAVORABLE UPPER-LEVEL
WINDS ARE GENERATING SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS
WITHIN AN AREA BOUNDED BY A LINE THAT STRETCHES FROM 10N137E TO
25N134E TO 25N152E TO 10N149E BACK TO 10N137E. THIS AREA INCLUDES
THE MARIANA ISLANDS.

CONVERGENT LOW-LEVEL WINDS ARE CREATING ISOLATED SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS OVER PALAU AND YAP BETWEEN 4N AND 10N FROM
130E TO 145E.

AN UPPER-LEVEL LOW IS CENTERED NEAR 20N175E. AN UPPER-LEVEL TROUGH
STRETCHES FROM THIS LOW TO 12N165E. DIVERGENT FLOW SOUTH OF THESE
TWO FEATURES COMBINED WITH TRADE-WIND CONVERGENCE IS GENERATING
SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS OVER CHUUK
AND POHNPEI STATES BETWEEN THE EQUATOR AND 10N FROM 150E TO
160E...OVER THE MARSHALL ISLANDS BETWEEN 2N AND 8N FROM 166E TO
172E...AND BETWEEN 4N AND 14N FROM 172E TO 180.

Event by event

1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.

Rip Current, Saipan

When: August 10, 12:00 PM SST to 1:00 PM SST
Where: Saipan County, Countywide
Reported by: NEWSPAPER

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

Every storm in Guam in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Guam, August 2003

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: 5338228.