A man died in a rip current several days after being caught in it.
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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 MHX wrote it up.
A man died in a rip current several days after being caught in it.
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 Newport/Morehead City, NC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 21, 8:31 AM EST, 3 hours 29 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Newport/Morehead City NC 931 AM EDT Tue May 21 2019 .SYNOPSIS... A weak cold front will move into the region today becoming stationary to the south Wednesday, before moving back north on Thursday. Strong high pressure returns to the area Friday and into the holiday weekend, however a wavy frontal boundary to the north could sag south into portions of the area late week. && .NEAR TERM /Rest of Today/... As of 930 AM Tue...Backdoor cold front still progged to advance southward through the day today, eventually reaching the Crystal Coast and pushing south by early evening. With advancing cold front, and sea breeze front developing by 18Z, have added slgt chc thunder to grids along Crystal coast, westward through Onslow county, as enough convergence and instability present this afternoon for a storm threat. Shear parameters also increase, with deep layer shear of up to 30 kts, and can't rule out a stronger storm or two. Prev discussion... As of 7 am Tue...No changes. Weak front will sag through the area this morning. Models continue to produce isolated light showers mainly along the coast this morning, then dry this afternoon as front moves further south. Will carry slight chance along south coast and adjacent southern coastal waters through 18Z. Highs will range from the mid 70s northern Outer Banks to mid/upper 80s southwest. && .SHORT TERM /Tonight/... As of 330 am Tue...High pressure surface/aloft begins to build over the region. Cool overnight temps in store with clear skies and a drier airmass with light east to northeast winds. Lows will range around 60, with lower 60s Outer Banks and south coast. && .LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... As of 345 AM Tue...A brief reprieve from the heat is expected Wednesday behind a cold front. Then a return to a highly amplified upper pattern is expected across the CONUS for the remainder of the period resulting in a strong upper ridge over the southeast states into early next week. This pattern favors well above average temperatures, possibly reaching record levels. Complicating the temperature forecast is a wavy frontal boundary forecast over the mid Atlantic region which will likely oscillate north/south and could drift into portions of eastern NC Friday into Sat producing slightly cooler temperatures especially along the coast due to onshore. Inland locations should remain with above normal warmth. Still looks like a predominately dry forecast through the period. The aforementioned wavy frontal boundary could also result in some isolated to widely scattered convective activity at times but current models indicate no significant/organized precipitation events over the next 7 days. Wednesday...Low level easterly flow behind the front will bring a quick reprieve from the heat, with more pleasant and seasonable temps and dewpoints Wed. Low level thickness values and onshore flow support highs in the low 80s inland and low/mid 70s along the coast. Thursday through Monday...A strengthening upper level ridge will move out of the Gulf of Mexico and park itself over the deep south Thursday into early next week. Surface high pressure will again set up over the western Atlantic, producing a deep SW flow to the region. Early signs are showing that this combination could bring close to record heat to the Southeast US. However, the latest model runs continue to show the ridge a bit further west, placing Eastern NC on the peripheral of the heat, and vulnerable to wavy front from the north drifting south into portions of the area though it still looks the potential for very hot conditions still exists and will forecast inland highs in the 90s through the period and mid to upper 80s closer to the coast. Continued to trend towards previous forecast, WPC and the ECMWF which keeps the ridge in place. Right now the hottest days look like Sunday and Monday. ECMWF shows 850mb temps 20C+ over most of Eastern NC Sunday through the middle of next week. Record high temps will be possible. Please see Climate section below for details. && .AVIATION /14Z TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... Short Term /12Z Wed/... As of 7 am Tue...Mixed IFR/MVFR at present, but VFR should prevail in the next couple of hours. Mostly sunny skies by mid- morning with winds switching to north as a weak front drops south through the area. SKC tonight with east to northeast wind 5 knots or less. Long Term /Wednesday through Saturday/... As of 345 AM Tue...Pred VFR conditions expected through the period, though cannot rule out patchy shallow fog and/or stratus early each morning at the terminals. && .MARINE... Short Term /through tonight/... As of 830 AM Tue...Latest near term trends indicate NE surge of winds will remain sub SCA, so have removed headlines for the waters and Pamlico. Still may see a gust or two with initial surge, but generally winds will remain in the 15-20 kt range post frontal passage. As of 7 am Tue...No SCA conditions yet, but expect winds to increase beginning in the northern coastal waters in the next couple of hours, so will make no change to current headlines. Cold front will sag south through the waters today, with winds veering from southwest to northeast during the day. Winds will diminish once again this afternoon as the front moves to the south and the pressure gradient loosens. Seas on the coastal waters will be 2-4 feet through the period. Long Term /Wednesday through Saturday/... As of 345 AM Tue...High pressure will be the dominant feature through the period. E/NE winds diminish to 10-15 kt Wed. S/SW winds 5-15 kt return on Thu. Guidance continues to show a front pushing through the waters Friday with SW winds 15-20 kt briefly becoming NW/N 10-15 kt over the northern and central waters in the afternoon, and NE all waters Fri night. E/NE flow 5-15 kt will continue across the waters Saturday. Seas generally 2 to 4 ft through the period. Seas may build up to 5 ft across the outer waters Thu night into Fri in period of moderate SW flow. && .CLIMATE... Record or near record warmth is expected late this week into early next week. Record High temps for 5/24 (Friday) LOCATION TEMP/YEAR New Bern 96/2011 (KEWN ASOS) Cape Hatteras 87/1992 (KHSE ASOS) Greenville 99/1925 (COOP - Not KPGV AWOS) Morehead City 87/1992 (COOP - Not KMRH ASOS) Kinston 94/1994 (COOP - Not KISO AWOS) Jacksonville 95/2011 (KNCA ASOS) Record High temps for 5/26 (Sunday) LOCATION TEMP/YEAR New Bern 100/1953 (KEWN ASOS) Cape Hatteras 88/1962 (KHSE ASOS) Greenville 99/1927 (COOP - Not KPGV AWOS) Morehead City 96/1953 (COOP - Not KMRH ASOS) Kinston 96/2011 (COOP - Not KISO AWOS) Jacksonville 94/2004 (KNCA ASOS) Record High temps for 5/27 (Monday) LOCATION TEMP/YEAR New Bern 96/1989 (KEWN ASOS) Cape Hatteras 86/2004 (KHSE ASOS) Greenville 96/1962 (COOP - Not KPGV AWOS) Morehead City 88/2006 (COOP - Not KMRH ASOS) Kinston 96/2011 (COOP - Not KISO AWOS) Jacksonville 97/1989 (KNCA ASOS) && .MHX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NC...None. MARINE...None. && SYNOPSIS...MHX NEAR TERM...HSA/TL SHORT TERM...HSA LONG TERM...JME AVIATION...JME/HSA MARINE...JME/HSA/TL CLIMATE...MHX
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Newport/Morehead City NC 427 AM EDT Tue May 21 2019 NCZ029-044>047-079>081-090>092-094-193-194-198-220830- Martin-Pitt-Washington-Tyrrell-Mainland Dare-Greene-Beaufort- Mainland Hyde-Duplin-Lenoir-Jones-Pamlico-Northern Craven- Southern Craven-Inland Onslow- 427 AM EDT Tue May 21 2019 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for eastern North Carolina. .DAY ONE...Today and tonight. Hazardous weather is not expected at this time. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday. Hot temperatures in the 90s Friday through Monday will likely result in heat indices in the 95 to 100 degree range each day. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not expected at this time. NCZ195-196-199-203>205-220830- West Carteret-East Carteret-Coastal Onslow-Northern Outer Banks- Ocracoke Island-Hatteras Island- 427 AM EDT Tue May 21 2019 ...MODERATE RIP CURRENT RISK IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS EVENING... This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for eastern North Carolina. .DAY ONE...Today and tonight. Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the Internet for more information about the following hazards. Moderate Rip Current Risk. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday. Hazardous weather is not expected at this time. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not expected at this time.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.
Four swimmers were caught in a rip current around 2 PM Sunday (5/19/19) afternoon. Surfers were able to pull in the swimmers, but one swimmer was unconscious and CPR was administered. This person died in the hospital two days later (5/21/19).
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, West Carteret | 2019-05-21 | 48 | Male | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in North Carolina in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, May 2019
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: 814159.