A tropical wave, former tropical storm Josephine, extended from the local Caribbean waters northward to the eastern part of Puerto Rico. Moderate to heavy intensity rainfall occurred with scattered to locally numerous thunderstorms that developed overnight south through southeast of Saint Croix and moved northwestward into Vieques and most of the east and southeast parts of Puerto Rico to…
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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 SJU wrote it up.
A tropical wave, former tropical storm Josephine, extended from the local Caribbean waters northward to the eastern part of Puerto Rico. Moderate to heavy intensity rainfall occurred with scattered to locally numerous thunderstorms that developed overnight south through southeast of Saint Croix and moved northwestward into Vieques and most of the east and southeast parts of Puerto Rico to produce urban and small stream flooding. Doppler radar estimated that parts of Humacao and Naguabo municipalities received up to two inches of rain.
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 San Juan, PR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 11, 11:06 PM AST, 6 hours 23 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JUAN PR 1106 PM AST THU SEP 11 2008 .UPDATE... SATELLITE IMAGERY AND DOPPLER WEATHER RADAR SHOWED THAT THE LEADING EDGE OF THE LOW LEVEL TROUGH CONTINUED TO MOVE WEST NORTHWEST ACROSS THE EASTERN HALF OF THE LOCAL REGION DURING THE EVENING HOURS. AS A RESULT...PATCHES OF CLOUDS AND PASSING SHOWERS WITH A FEW ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS MOVED ACROSS THE SURROUNDING COASTAL WATERS. SOME OF THE SHOWERS BRUSHED PARTS OF THE NORTH AND EAST COAST OF PUERTO RICO AS WELL AS PARTS OF THE U.S VIRGIN ISLANDS. MOST OF THE RAINFALL HOWEVER WAS OF LIGHT TO MODERATE INTENSITY OVER LAND...WHILE THE HEAVIER RAINFALL REMAINED OFFSHORE. WINDS OVER LAND WERE MAINLY FROM EAST LESS THAN 10 MPH. EXPECT PATCHES OF MOISTURE ALONG THE NORTHERN AXIS AND TRAILING EDGE OF THE PASSING TROUGH TO CONTINUE TO AFFECT THE LOCAL AREA OVERNIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. THIS WILL BRING PERIODS OF PASSING SHOWERS TO PARTS OF THE ISLANDS. HOWEVER RAINFALL WILL BE BRIEF WITH NO SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL ACCUMULATIONS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. ON FRIDAY AND INTO THE WEEKEND EXPECT SUFFICIENT TRADE WIND MOISTURE ACROSS THE AREA...TO COMBINE WITH DIURNAL AND LOCAL TERRAIN EFFECTS...TO PRODUCE LATE MORNING AND AFTERNOON CONVECTION ACROSS PARTS OF THE ISLANDS. LATEST 00Z UPPER AIR DATA ACROSS THE REGION...SHOWED A MODERATE INCREASE IN THE LAYER PRECIPITABLE WATER...COMPARED TO THE EARLIER SOUNDINGS...WITH GFS FORECAST SOUNDING SUGGESTING A SOUTHEASTERLY LOW LEVEL WIND FLOW BY FRIDAY. THEREFORE MADE SOME MINOR ADJUSTMENTS TO FOCUS RAINFALL ACROSS PARTS OF THE INTERIOR SECTIONS OF PUERTO RICO AND THE WEST SECTIONS OF THE ISLANDS. THE REMAINDER OF THE INHERITED FORECAST LOOKS GOOD WITH NO MAJOR CHANGES REQUIRED. .AVIATION...VFR CONDITIONS EXPECTED TO PREVAIL AT ALL TAF SITES OVERNIGHT. SCATTERED PASSING SHOWERS WILL MOVE OVER THE CARIBBEAN WATERS OVER THE USVI AND EASTERN PR THROUGH THE NIGHT...BUT ARE NOT EXPECTED TO PRODUCE MORE THAN VERY BRIEF MVFR CIGS/VSBYS. LOW LEVEL FLOW WILL BE SHIFTING TOWARDS THE SOUTHEAST BY MORNING AT 10 KNOTS OR LESS. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 355 PM AST THU SEP 11 2008/ SYNOPSIS...A BROAD AREA OF LOW PRESSURE ASSOCIATED WITH THE REMNANTS OF TROPICAL DEPRESSION JOSEPHINE...EXTEND ACROSS THE LOCAL COASTAL WATERS THIS AFTERNOON. THIS LOW LEVEL TROUGH IS EXPECTED TO MOVE WEST NORTHWESTWARD AND AWAY FROM THE LOCAL WATERS LATER TONIGHT... WHILE SLIGHTLY ENHANCING SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS...MAINLY ACROSS THE LOCAL ATLANTIC WATERS...THIS EVENING THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. DISCUSSION...THE DOPPLER RADAR AND SATELLITE IMAGES SHOWED VERY ISOLATED SHOWERS MOVING ACROSS THE LOCAL FORECAST AREA. A STRONG THUNDERSTORM CELL DEVELOPED OVER THE MUNICIPALITIES OF MOROVIS... OROCOVIS...NARANJITO AND CIALES. THIS THUNDERSTORM PRODUCED RAINFALL ACCUMULATION OF 2 TO 4 INCHES. MORE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP THROUGH SUNSET AFFECTING THE CENTRAL NORTHERN COAST. A TROPICAL WVAE ALSO KNOWN AS JOSEPHINE WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE ACROSS THE LOCAL FORECAST AREA THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. IN THE LAST FEW HOURS WINDS ALREADY BEGAN TO SHIFT TO THE SOUTHEAST AS THE WAVE AXIS CONTINUE TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA. SATELLITE IMAGES ARE SHOWING AN AREA OF LOW LEVEL MOISTURE OVER THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN WATERS. THIS MOISTURE IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE THE SHOWER COVERAGE ACROSS THE CARIBBEAN WATERS AND SOUTH PORTIONS OF PUERTO RICO THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. THE NEXT FEW DAYS EXPECT SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS TO DEVELOP EVERY AFTERNOON ACROSS THE INTERIOR AND WESTERN PORTIONS OF PUERTO RICO. A AVIATION...LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL CONTINUE ITS WAY ACROSS THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS AND THE EASTERN SECTIONS OF PUERTO RICO THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT...WITH BRIEF PERIODS OF MVFR CONDITIONS ACROSS TJSJ... TIST...TISX...TKPK...AND TNCM AFTER 22Z. LATEST TJSJ 12Z SOUNDING INDICATED A VERY LIGHT AND VARIABLY WIND FLOW FROM THE SURFACE TO AROUND 30K FEET. MOSTLY VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED ELSEWHERE ACROSS THE LOCAL SITES. MARINE...MARINE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH AT LEAST SUNDAY WITH SEAS AVERAGING BETWEEN 2 TO 4 FEET AND WINDS AT AROUND 10 TO 15 KNOTS. NEXT TROPICAL WAVE WILL BE REACHING OUR LOCAL WATERS ON TUESDAY NIGHT. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... SJU 78 89 78 89 / 50 20 20 20 STT 79 88 79 88 / 40 30 30 30 && .SJU WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... PR...NONE. VI...NONE. && 93/09
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR PUERTO RICO AND THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JUAN PR 618 AM AST THU SEP 11 2008 AMZ710>750-PRZ001>013-121000- SAN JUAN AND VICINITY-NORTHEAST-SOUTHEAST-EASTERN INTERIOR- NORTH CENTRAL-CENTRAL INTERIOR-PONCE AND VICINITY-NORTHWEST- WESTERN INTERIOR-MAYAGUEZ AND VICINITY-SOUTHWEST-CULEBRA-VIEQUES- THE NEARSHORE AND OFF SHORE ATLANTIC AND CARIBBEAN COASTAL WATERS- 618 AM AST THU SEP 11 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PUERTO RICO AND THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. AMZ720-730-VIZ001-002-121000- ST. THOMAS ST. JOHN ADJACENT ISLANDS-ST CROIX- NEARSHORE ATLANTIC AND ADJACENT CARIBBEAN COASTAL WATERS- 618 AM AST THU SEP 11 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS AND THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Parts of Highway 3 and 31 were reported impassable due to River Rio Blanco overflowing its banks.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Puerto Rico in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Puerto Rico, September 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: 137164.