Breezy onshore winds occurred along the Volusia County coastline as a result of a tight pressure gradient between a ridge of high pressure over the southeastern United States and a trough of low pressure located over the local western Atlantic. These winds led to rough surf and long-period northeast swells along the Volusia County coastline.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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 MLB wrote it up.
Breezy onshore winds occurred along the Volusia County coastline as a result of a tight pressure gradient between a ridge of high pressure over the southeastern United States and a trough of low pressure located over the local western Atlantic. These winds led to rough surf and long-period northeast swells along the Volusia County coastline. Two swimmers, an hour apart and at different beaches, were imperiled by the dangerous ocean conditions. An elderly man suffered a heart attack and died while being rescued from the surf by life guards. A young teenager died from an asthma attack while fighting the rough surf. Autopsies revealed the two males did not die from drowning, therefore the deaths were listed as indirectly related to the rough surf and strong rip currents.
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 Melbourne, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 17, 8:15 AM EST, 5 hours 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL 915 AM EDT SUN JUN 17 2012 .DISCUSSION... ...HIGH RISK OF RIP CURRENTS AT AREA BEACHES TODAY... IT WILL BE ANOTHER MOSTLY DRY DAY ACROSS EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA AS SUBSIDENT NORTH FLOW ALOFT CONTINUES WITH DRY LOW LEVEL NE FLOW. AS WITH YESTERDAY...A FEW SHOWERS WILL MOVE ONTO THE COAST FROM THE LOCAL ATLANTIC THIS MORNING WITH VERY ISOLATED SHOWERS OVER THE INTERIOR IN THE LATE MORNING AND EARLY AFTERNOON BEFORE ACTIVITY SHIFTS FURTHER SOUTH AND WEST BY THE EVENING. MAX TEMPS WILL REMAIN A FEW DEGREES BELOW NORMAL NEAR THE COAST IN THE MID 80S...UPPER 80S/NR 90 INLAND. HOWEVER...MODERATE (5-6 FT) LONG PERIOD (9-10 SEC) NE SWELLS WILL CONTINUE TO IMPACT THE SURF ZONE. A LITTLE LESS ONSHORE FLOW MAY MAKE THE SURF MORE INVITING TO BEACHGOERS. WE ARE ALSO APPROACHING A NEW MOON. FOR THESE REASONS WILL ISSUE A RIP CURRENT STATEMENT FOR HIGH RISK OF RIP CURRENTS. && .AVIATION...PREVAILING VFR. OCCASIONAL CIGS AROUND FL030 ALONG COASTAL TERMINALS WITH VERY ISOLATED ONSHORE MOVING SHOWERS. && .MARINE...WITH HIGH PRESSURE CONTINUING TO NOSE DOWN THE EAST COAST THE PRESSURE GRADIENT HAS WEAKENED OVER THE LOCAL WATERS...BRINGING THE EAST-NORTHEAST FLOW DOWN TO 10-15KTS. HOWEVER...THE HIGHER SEAS GENERATED BY THE NE FETCH OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS WILL CONTINUE WITH SEAS 5-6 FEET OFFSHORE AND 4-5 FEET NEARSHORE THROUGH THIS EVENING. SMALL CRAFT SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION. && .MLB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FL...NONE. AM...NONE. && MOSES/GLITTO
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL 1028 AM EDT SUN JUN 17 2012 AMZ550-552-555-570-572-575-FLZ041-044>047-053-054-058-059-064-141- 144-147-172100- COASTAL WATERS FROM FLAGLER BEACH TO VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE TO SEBASTIAN INLET OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM SEBASTIAN INLET TO JUPITER INLET OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM FLAGLER BEACH TO VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE 20 TO 60 NM OFFSHORE- WATERS FROM VOLUSIA BREVARD COUNTY LINE TO SEBASTIAN INLET 20 TO 60 NM OFFSHORE- WATERS FROM SEBASTIAN INLET TO JUPITER INLET 20 TO 60 NM OFFSHORE- INLAND VOLUSIA-NORTHERN LAKE-ORANGE-SEMINOLE-SOUTHERN BREVARD- OSCEOLA-INDIAN RIVER-OKEECHOBEE-ST. LUCIE-MARTIN-COASTAL VOLUSIA- SOUTHERN LAKE-NORTHERN BREVARD- 1028 AM EDT SUN JUN 17 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. .RIP CURRENT IMPACT... THE SURF WILL NOT BE AS ROUGH TODAY DUE TO SLIGHTLY WEAKER ONSHORE WINDS. DESPITE A MORE INVITING SURF...LONG PERIOD OCEAN SWELLS AND AN UPCOMING NEW MOON WILL PRODUCE A HIGH RIP CURRENT DANGER ALONG AREA BEACHES. THE SURF ZONE WILL BE HAZARDOUS ALL DAY BUT THE GREATEST RIP CURRENT RISK WILL OCCUR THROUGH EARLY AFTERNOON DUE TO TIDAL EFFECTS. WHEN THE RIP CURRENT RISK IS HIGH...THE SURF ZONE IS DANGEROUS FOR ALL LEVELS OF SWIMMERS AND ENTERING THE WATER IS NOT ADVISED. RIP CURRENTS ARE POWERFUL CHANNELS OF WATER FLOWING QUICKLY AWAY FROM SHORE...WHICH OCCUR MOST OFTEN AT LOW SPOTS OR BREAKS IN THE SANDBAR AND IN THE VICINITY OF STRUCTURES SUCH AS JETTIES AND PIERS. HEED THE ADVICE OF LIFEGUARDS AND THE BEACH PATROL. PAY ATTENTION TO FLAGS AND POSTED SIGNS. .WIND AND SEA IMPACT... SMALL CRAFT SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION OFFSHORE FOR SEAS 5 TO 6 FEET. HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS MAY EXIST NEAR INLETS. WINDS WILL BE 10 TO 15 KNOTS OUT OF THE EAST NORTHEAST. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. A DRY ATMOSPHERE WILL PRODUCE MUCH BELOW NORMAL RAIN CHANCES MONDAY AND TUESDAY. DEEPER MOISTURE IS FORECAST TO RETURN NORTHWARD AND OVERSPREAD THE FLORIDA PENINSULA FROM THE SOUTH BY LATE WEEK. THIS WILL PRODUCE MORE TYPICAL COVERAGE OF STORMS AS EARLY AS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON ACROSS THE SOUTH AND ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA LATER IN THE WEEK. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY. KELLY/GLITTO
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.
A 66 year old man became unconscious and subsequently died of a heart attack while being rescued from rough surf and strong rip currents at Ormond Beach.
A 14 year old male was pulled out to sea by a rip current at New Smyrna Beach. He suffered an asthma attack and died while in the water. The rough surf and rip currents pulled him under water. His body was not recovered until the following morning.
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, Volusia | 2012-06-17 | 66 | Male | In Water | Indirect |
| High Surf, Volusia | 2012-06-17 | 14 | Male | In Water | Indirect |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, June 2012
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: 380889, 380890.