Coastal Okaloosa storm history

A 49 year old Georgia man drowned after he was swept away by a rip current while trying to help his daughter and friend who were struggling in the surf.

A 36 year old male from Georgia was caught in a rip current near the Okaloosa Pier and drowned.

A 51 year old male paddle boarder drowned in high surf off of Okaloosa Island, FL.

Storm surge water levels of 1 to 3 feet along area beaches along with rough surf resulted in minor beach erosion. Some immediate coastal roadways and low lying areas were flooded.

Albert Mullally Jr of Morgan City Louisiana drowned just after 6 PM CDT while swimming in the surf at James Lee Park in Destin.

Airman First Class Josh Roussell of the 46th Test Wing on Eglin Air Force Base died shortly after 6 PM CDT after he was pulled out in a rip current while playing football in waist-deep water with his brother-in-law.

Joseph Jones, a 39 year old from Riverdale, Georgia, was pronounced dead at the hospital after being caught in a strong rip current at Destin Beach around 5 PM CDT. He entered the surf to help two young girls that were caught in the rip current.

A 65 year old man from Indiana drowned in rough surf behind Sand Piper Cove condos. Red flags were flying warning people of rough surf where the man drowned.

A prolonged period of dry weather continued into early December resulting in continued drought conditions across southeast Mississippi. Severe (D2) drought conditions were found across much of the region early in December. Drought conditions rapidly improved across the Florida pa…

A prolonged period of dry weather resulted in worsening drought conditions across Northwest Florida. By the end of November, the entire region was under Extreme (D3) Drought. The entire area saw rain totals less than 50% of normal for the month, with many areas receiving less tha…

A tenth inch ice accrual measured on vegetation.

Minor beach erosion and coastal flooding was reported along the Gulf beaches around Destin associated with the landfall of Tropical Storm Claudette. Maximum tides 2.3 feet above normal were reported by a tidal gauge at the East Pass in Destin.

As hurricane Ike moved well south of the panhandle, storm surge caused major beach erosion across the area. The astronomical tide was very high and the surge adding to this caused the total tide height to be higher than what occurred in Gustav. The beaches also had very little ti…

As Gustav moved south and west of the area higher than normal tides caused beach erosion in Okaloosa County. High water also washed over Highway 98 between Fort Walton Beach and Destin. The road remained open but traffic was diminished to one lane due to the high water. The storm…

As hurricane Gustav moved south of the area on September 1, tropical storm force winds were observed along the immediate coast and also offshore. A tropical storm warning that was issued for northwest Florida the end of August, continued into the first of September. The warning w…

Tropical Storm Fay moved into Okaloosa county around 300 PM CST on August 23. The storm moved through the panhandle during the afternoon and early evening bringing only Tropical depression conditions. Fay's wind speed diminished to a depression during the afternoon and evening an…

An excessive heat warning was issued during the daytime on August 11 and 13.

Strong southerly winds brought coastal flooding to low lying areas along the coast. Above normal tides and beach erosion were observed from Fort Pickens to Destin. The tides were high enough to flood several of the roads along Santa Rosa Island, especially near Fort Pickens and N…