Rip Current in Alabama, May 27, 2007

Name: Rip Current in Alabama, May 27, 2007
Start: 2007-05-27T11:45
End: 2007-05-27T11:45
Location: Alabama

May 27, 2007 · NWS MOB · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Strong winds over the near shore waters created dangerous rip currents and caused one death.

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 MOB wrote it up.

Strong winds over the near shore waters created dangerous rip currents and caused one death.

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 Mobile, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 27, 3:33 AM CST, 8 hours 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 27, 3:33 AM CST, 8 hours 12 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
433 AM CDT SUN MAY 27 2007

.SHORT TERM (TODAY AND TONIGHT)...LATEST SFC MAP SHOWS BROAD SFC
RIDGE CENTERED NEAR THE CAROLINA COAST EXTENDING WSW TO THE MS AL
BORDER. ALOFT MID TO UPPER RIDGE WAS LOCATED OVER MUCH OF THE SE
CONUS PROGGED TO REMAIN STATIONARY THROUGH 12Z MON. TO THE SOUTH
LATEST NAM AND GFS MODEL GUIDANCE DEPICT A WEAK MID LEVEL
DISTURBANCE MOVING WEST OVER THE NE GULF PROGGED TO TRACK WNW LATER
TODAY MOVING ONSHORE ALONG THE MS AL COAST THIS AFTERNOON. WITH
THIS...SLIGHTLY BETTER FORCING ALOFT IS EXPECTED TODAY MOSTLY
OFFSHORE AND OVER EXTREME WESTERN SECTIONS OF THE CWFA. A WEAK
SEABREEZE CIRCULATION IS ALSO NOTED IN THE MODEL DATA THIS AFTERNOON
WITH THE NAM DEPICTING ISOLATED POPS FORMING ALONG THE WEAK BOUNDARY
GENERALLY FROM SOUTHEAST MS TO THE EXTREME WESTERN SECTIONS OF THE
FL PANHANDLE. WITH THIS PATTERN WILL CONTINUE TO MENTION ISOLATED
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FOR THIS AFTERNOON GENERALLY OVER COASTAL
SECTIONS OF AL AND NWFL STRETCHING WEST INTO SOUTHERN SECTIONS OF SE
MS. FOR TEMPS WILL STAY CLOSE TO THE CURRENT MAVMOS FOR NOW. /32

&&

.LONG TERM (MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY)...DEEP LAYER RIDGE SHIFTS
EASTWARD OUT OF THE EXTREME SOUTHEAST STATES TO JUST OFF THE EAST
COAST ON MONDAY IN RESPONSE TO SEVERAL SHORTWAVES ADVANCING FROM THE
SOUTHERN PLAINS.  A LONGWAVE TROF ADVANCES INTO THE NORTHWEST STATES
AND INTO THE PLAINS THROUGH WEDNESDAY WITH THE RIDGE SLOWLY
RETREATING FROM THE SOUTHEAST COAST.  THE SEA BREEZE DEVELOPS EACH
DAY WHILE DEEP LAYER MOISTURE CONTINUES TO SLOWLY INCREASE.  MODEL
SOUNDINGS DEPICT FAIRLY LIMITED MOISTURE AND A CAPPING INVERSION
MONDAY AND TUESDAY...BUT MORE FAVORABLE CONDITIONS ON WEDNESDAY.
WILL CONTINUE WITH GENERALLY SMALL DAYTIME POPS FOR MONDAY AND
TUESDAY AND INTRODUCING LOW END CHANCE POPS OVER THE WESTERN PORTION
OF THE AREA ON WEDNESDAY.  THE UPPER TROF CONTINUES EASTWARD THROUGH
SATURDAY ON INTO THE EASTERN STATES BREAKING THE GRIP OF THE RIDGE
ON THE REGION.  MODEL SOUNDINGS SHOW THE EROSION OF THE MID LEVEL
CAP BY THURSDAY WITH DEEP LAYER MOISTURE CONTINUING TO INCREASE WITH
PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES RISING TO NEAR 1.75 INCHES BY FRIDAY.  THE
GFS BRINGS THROUGH A WEAK FRONT/SURFACE TROF ON SATURDAY WHICH IS
SUPPORTED BY THE CANADIAN GEM.  CHANCE POPS CONTINUE THROUGH
SATURDAY.  AGAIN RAISED HIGHS FOR A PORTION OF THE NORTHEAST INLAND
AREA ABOVE MOS DUE TO CONTRIBUTION FROM SUBSIDENCE AND LOWERED DTS
HIGHS A DEGREE OR TWO FROM MOS DUE TO COOLING FROM AFTERNOON SEA
BREEZE. /29

&&

.MARINE...SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE CENTERED NEAR THE CAROLINA COAST
WILL HELP MAINTAIN A LIGHT TO MODERATE EAST TO SOUTHEAST WIND FLOW
OVER THE MARINE AREA THROUGH THURSDAY. SEAS WILL RANGE 2 TO 4 FEET
NEAR SHORE AND 3 TO 5 FEET BEYOND 20 NM. /32

&&

.FIRE...NO CONCERNS.  ADJUSTED DEWPOINTS DOWN A FEW DEGREES FROM MOS
OVER THE NORTHEAST INLAND PORTION DUE TO DRIER AIR MIXING DOWN
DURING THE AFTERNOON.  AFTERNOON RELATIVE HUMIDITIES SHOULD REMAIN
ABOVE 35 PERCENT...EXCEPT BRIEFLY IN A FEW POCKETS HERE AND THERE
TODAY.  WITH MOISTURE GRADUALLY INCREASING...AFTERNOON RELATIVE
HUMIDITIES REMAIN ABOVE CRITICAL LEVELS MONDAY AND TUESDAY. /29

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
MOBILE      85  63  85  64 /  05  05  20  10
PENSACOLA   83  67  83  68 /  05  05  20  10
DESTIN      82  68  82  69 /  05  05  20  10
EVERGREEN   88  60  87  61 /  05  05  05  10
WAYNESBORO  86  64  86  63 /  05  05  05  10
CAMDEN      88  60  87  61 /  05  05  05  10

&&

.MOB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
AL...NONE.
FL...NONE.
MS...NONE.
GM...NONE.

&&

29 EVERSOLE
32 ESBENSEN

Hazardous weather outlook, May 27, 5:00 AM CST, 6 hours 45 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
600 AM CDT SUN MAY 27 2007

ALZ051>064-FLZ001>006-GMZ630-650-655-670-675-MSZ067-075-076-078-079-
281200-
COASTAL WATERS FROM DESTIN TO PENSACOLA FL OUT 20 NM-
WATERS FROM DESTIN TO PENSACOLA FL FROM 20 TO 60 NM-
COASTAL WATERS FROM PENSACOLA FL TO PASCAGOULA MS OUT 20 NM-
WATERS FROM PENSACOLA FL TO PASCAGOULA MS FROM 20 TO 60 NM-
MOBILE BAY-BALDWIN COASTAL-BALDWIN INLAND-BUTLER-CHOCTAW-CLARKE-
CONECUH-COVINGTON-CRENSHAW-ESCAMBIA-ESCAMBIA COASTAL-ESCAMBIA INLAND-
GEORGE-GREENE-MOBILE COASTAL-MOBILE INLAND-MONROE-OKALOOSA COASTAL-
OKALOOSA INLAND-PERRY-SANTA ROSA COASTAL-SANTA ROSA INLAND-STONE-
WASHINGTON-WAYNE-WILCOX-
600 AM CDT SUN MAY 27 2007

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR INLAND SOUTHEAST
MISSISSIPPI...SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...THE WESTERN FLORIDA PANHANDLE...
AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT...

THERE IS A MODERATE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS ALONG AREA BEACHES TODAY.

NO SEVERE IS EXPECTED THROUGH TONIGHT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY...

NO HAZARDOUS OR SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS FOR
SEVERE WEATHER OPERATIONS WILL NOT BE REQUIRED.

Event by event

1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.

Rip Current, Lower Baldwin

When: May 27, 11:45 AM CST
Where: Lower Baldwin forecast zone
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by: Newspaper

For the second time in as many days, a vacationer was overpowered by the Gulf of Mexico's tumultuous surf and drowned near Gulf Shores. A 31 year old male was pronounced dead at the scene. He had been vacationing with a group of friends and had checked out of the hotel and had gone to Gulf Shores for one last swim before heading home. People saw him struggling in the water, but were unable to reach him due to the rough surf.

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, Lower Baldwin	2007-05-27	31	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

Every storm in Alabama in 2007 Every state in 2007 This day in weather history Warnings in Alabama, May 2007

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: 33267.