Strong east to southeast winds of 20 to 25 mph caused strong rip currents to form along the southeast Florida Atlantic beaches. A rip current in Hollywood claimed the life of a 57 year old man.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS MFL wrote it up.
Strong east to southeast winds of 20 to 25 mph caused strong rip currents to form along the southeast Florida Atlantic beaches. A rip current in Hollywood claimed the life of a 57 year old man.
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 Miami, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 24, 5:29 AM EST, 2 hours 16 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 629 AM EDT FRI OCT 24 2008 .AVIATION...VFR EARLY ALL TERMINALS BUT XPCT MVFR CIGS TO DVLP KAPF AS WDSPRD RA/ISOLD TSRA MOVES NE FM GULF WITH TEMPO TIL 14Z. ATTM XPCT BRIEF MVFR VSBY/CIG PSBL E COAST TERMINALS BUT NOT DVLPG TIL AFT 16Z. ONLY TSRA IN GUF OF MEX ATTM AND TSTMS PSBL BUT NOT PLACED IN ALL TAFS AS WELL AND WILL AMEND IF NEED ARISES. E WINDS...GUST TO 20 PLUS KNOTS E COAST TO DVLP W COAST AFT 14Z. WINDS WL GRADUALLY SHIFT TO SE TO SSE THRU PD. && SHORT TERM/AVIATION...15/JR
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTH FLORIDA NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 502 AM EDT FRI OCT 24 2008 FLZ063-066>075-168-172>174-250015- GLADES-HENDRY-INLAND PALM BEACH-METRO PALM BEACH-COASTAL COLLIER- INLAND COLLIER-INLAND BROWARD-METRO BROWARD-INLAND MIAMI DADE- METRO MIAMI DADE-MAINLAND MONROE-COASTAL PALM BEACH- COASTAL BROWARD-COASTAL MIAMI DADE-FAR SOUTH MIAMI DADE- 502 AM EDT FRI OCT 24 2008 ...HIGH RISK OF RIP CURRENTS ATLANTIC BEACHES... ...LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN POSSIBLE NORTH OF ALLIGATOR ALLEY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH FLORIDA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT RIP CURRENTS: EAST TO SOUTHEAST WINDS OF 20 TO 25 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS ACROSS THE ATLANTIC WATERS WILL LEAD TO A HIGH RISK OF RIP CURRENTS AT THE ATLANTIC BEACHES OF PALM BEACH, BROWARD, AND MIAMI DADE COUNTIES TODAY AND TONIGHT. STRONG RIP CURRENTS ARE LIKELY, SO SWIMMING IS STRONGLY DISCOURAGED. THUNDERSTORMS: WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS MAY OCCUR OVER THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE AREA WITH SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE NORTH OF ALLIGATOR ALLEY. WIND: SUSTAINED WINDS OVER 25 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE MAINLY THIS MORNING OVER THE ATLANTIC WATERS AND THE EAST COAST. FLOODING: LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN WILL BE POSSIBLE IN AREAS MAINLY NORTH OF ALLIGATOR ALLEY WHERE 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN MAY FALL. LOW LYING AND FLOOD PRONE AREAS MAY SEE SOME LOCALIZED FLOODING. WAVES: SEAS OF 7 TO 8 FEET CAN BE EXPECTED OVER THE ATLANTIC WATERS TODAY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY A RISK FOR THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE SATURDAY WITH LIGHTNING STRIKES AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL BEING THE MAIN IMPACTS. GULF STREAM SEAS WILL REBUILD TO AROUND 7 FEET MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY DUE TO NORTH WINDS EXPECTED BEHIND A COLD FRONT WHICH IS FORECAST TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA LATER ON SUNDAY. THE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS MAY REDEVELOP AT THE ATLANTIC BEACHES EARLY NEXT WEEK. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED. FOR MORE INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MIAMI WEBSITE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MIAMI.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.
A 57 year old male was swimming with a friend and his son at an unguarded beach near North Ocean Drive and Forrest Street in Hollywood Beach when a rip current caused him to drown. Medics performed CPR but were unable to save him.
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, Coastal Broward County | 2008-10-24 | 57 | Male | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, October 2008
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: 134888.