Rip Current — Coastal Horry, South Carolina

2020-08-04 · Coastal Horry, South Carolina

Event narrative

A 76 year old male drowned in the Garden City area attempting to rescue his son from a rip current. Lingering swells from Hurricane Isaias led to the rip current activity.

Wider weather episode

Hurricane Isaias came off the African coast as a tropical wave on July 23, 2020. It became Tropical Storm Isaias on July 30th, further strengthening to a hurricane on the 31st. After crossing the Bahamas, it weakened to a tropical storm. Isaias strengthened again to a hurricane as it approached the coast of North Carolina. Hurricane Isaias made landfall at Ocean Isle Beach as a strong Category 1 around 11 pm on August 3rd, with an 87 mph recorded gust. It pushed inland to Goldsboro NC, where it weakened and accelerated northward.

Rainfall was heaviest along the coast of Georgetown County, topping out at nearly seven inches. Most areas along the coast of South Carolina received around three to four inches on average, with lesser amounts inland.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 916399. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.