California, 2019

High Surf in California, April 21, 2019

April 21, 2019 · NWS MTR · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A 44 year old man died the afternoon of the 21st when his hang glider landed in the ocean near Devil's Slide along the San Mateo coastline. The pilot landed in the ocean and unhooked himself from the glider but could not make it to shore due to heavy surf and cliffs.

Where it happened

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.

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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 MTR wrote it up.

A 44 year old man died the afternoon of the 21st when his hang glider landed in the ocean near Devil's Slide along the San Mateo coastline. The pilot landed in the ocean and unhooked himself from the glider but could not make it to shore due to heavy surf and cliffs. He was found unconscious and not breathing and was pulled from the water. CPR was performed but the victim was not responsive and pronounced dead.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

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Event by event

1 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.

High Surf, San Francisco Peninsula Coast

When
April 21, 3:00 PM PST to 4:09 PM PST
Where
San Francisco Peninsula Coast forecast zone
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by
Newspaper
Coordinates
37.229, -122.183 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A 44 year old man died the afternoon of the 21st when his hang glider landed in the ocean near Devil's Slide along the San Mateo coastline. The pilot landed in the ocean and unhooked himself from the glider but could not make it to shore due to heavy surf and cliffs. He was found unconscious and not breathing and was pulled from the water. CPR was performed but the victim was not responsive and pronounced dead https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/04/21/body-recovered-from-water-off-devils-slide/.

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.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
High Surf, San Francisco Peninsula Coast2019-04-2144MaleIn WaterDirect

What these are

High Surf
Large waves breaking on the shore that caused damage, erosion or casualties.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in California in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in California, April 2019

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: 812917.