High surf and rip currents led to a death of a 54 year old woman from Memphis,TN in the surf near Ft. Morgan.
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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 MOB wrote it up.
High surf and rip currents led to a death of a 54 year old woman from Memphis,TN in the surf near Ft. Morgan.
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 Mobile, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 29, 12:27 PM CST, 33 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Mobile AL
127 PM CDT Sat Aug 29 2020
.NEAR TERM /Now Through Sunday/...Upper trough will begin to move
eastward off the east coast this afternoon with mainly westerly
flow across the area through Sunday. A couple weak shortwaves will
move through the upper pattern and across northern Alabama. This
will allow for showers and storms to develop across the area this
afternoon and Sunday afternoon. Given the higher moisture values
with PWATS approaching 2.25 inches coverage should be on the
higher side of coverage. Storms will begin to subside during the
evening and shift offshore. The biggest issue with these storms
will be there slow movement and heavy rainfall rates. We have
already had several storms today produce 2 to 3 inch per hour
rainfall rates and if storms stay over a location for a while it
could result in some localized flooding. This is especially true
for locations that have poor drainage or are flood prone. Severe
storms will probably not be an issue given the moist profiles but
a gusty storm cannot be ruled out.
Given the current cloud cover and storms already developing,
temperatures should remain mild with highs in the mid to upper
80s. A few locations might jump into the low 90s if the sun can
come out. Sunday will be much of the same with early storms and
clouds likely limiting how high the temperatures get. A HIGH risk
of rip currents will continue through Sunday with continued
southerly flow. BB/03
&&
.AVIATION...
18Z issuance...Mainly VFR conditions across the area outside of
some very localized MVFR ceilings near the coast. Scattered to
numerous showers and storms have developed near the coast. These
showers and storms will spread inland throughout the afternoon
with the best chances along the I-10 corridor. IFR conditions
could be possible within the vicinity of any storms. Storms will
subside this evening with VFR conditions continuing through the
night. Winds will be around 10 knots out of the south-southwest.
&&
.MOB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
AL...High Rip Current Risk through Sunday afternoon for ALZ265-266.
FL...High Rip Current Risk through Sunday afternoon for FLZ202-204-
206.
MS...None.
GM...None.
&&
This product is also available on the web at:
http://weather.gov/mobThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.
A 54 year old woman from Memphis, TN died as the result of rip currents. She was part of a human chain that formed to help rescue two other swimmers in distress, but it fell apart due to rip currents and high surf. In total, 20 people had to be rescued from the surf.
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, Baldwin Coastal | 2020-08-29 | 54 | Female | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alabama in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, August 2020
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: 917655.