American Samoa rip currents and high surf
Every recorded rip current or surf record since 1996 · 5 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 172 rip current and surf records in American Samoa from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 7.4 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the September 29, 2009 tsunami in Manu'a District: 32 deaths, 148 injuries and $111 million in damage in 2025 dollars.
Rip currents and high surf in American Samoa, 1996 to 2026
Surf records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 1721996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 7.4average
- Deaths
- 51159 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $119Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 200520 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are rip current and surf records common in American Samoa?
American Samoa averages about 7.4 rip current and surf records a year since 2000. The busiest year on record was 2005 (20).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
When is the surf season in American Samoa?
American Samoa's rip current and surf records by month. The busiest month is September (24 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 5 · Feb 13 · Mar 9 · Apr 18 · May 15 · Jun 22 · Jul 20 · Aug 20 · Sep 24 · Oct 16 · Nov 3 · Dec 7 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest rip current and surf records in American Samoa?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-09-29 | TsunamiManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila A 7.9 earthquake occurred about 120 miles southwest of Pago Pago and it shook the entire Samoan and Tongan region. The earthquake occurred around 648 am Samoan local time, and it took within 15 minutes for the tsunami waves to reach the Samoan Islands. | 32 | 148 | $111M | |
| 2007-02-17 | Rip CurrentManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila After 10:00 am Sunday 18 February 2007, 2 bodies were found and 1 lost at sea along the mouth of Aoa village harbor which lies to the north to northeast of Tutuila Island of American Samoa. The youngest of the deceased was seen alive Saturday afternoon as he was yelling for help in the ocean while swimming. 2 ... | 3 | 0 | – | |
| 2020-09-28 | Rip CurrentManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila NWS Employee from the village of Amouli and friend of one of the fishermen who lost his life reported the tragic event. Strong rip currents swept two fishermen at the edge of the reef when surfs were transitioning from high to low tide. | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2020-06-15 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila Observations from the PacIOOS buoy reported surfs over 16 feet with steep wave heights near 12 to 15 feet. This combination along with strong winds caused a small craft to capsize near the auasi port of entry. 15 passengers were onboard and had drifted to sea for nearly 2 hours until help was found. Unfortunately 2 ... | 2 | 0 | $23K | |
| 2019-12-24 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila One storm episode: 2 records, 2019-12-24 to 2019-12-25; the totals are the episode's. Wind generated waves associated with an active trough and thunderstorms in the vicinity, have caused seas to reach 10 to 14 feet throughout this period. Two fatalities in the north west and north east shores were reported within a few days apart; both were veteran fishermen. | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2019-08-17 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila News from the talanei reported two boys swept out to sea during high surf conditions due to strong rip currents. | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2011-06-01 | Rip CurrentManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila On a late Saturday afternoon 4th of June, an incident occurred at the village of Amouli. Two young teenage girls were swimming close to the beach and were dragged out to the deep sea due to strong rip currents. One girl was rescued with minor injuries while the other girl’s body was never found. Rescue Team ended ... | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-08-12 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila According to KHJ News, a 15-year-old boy died on the afternoon of the 12th after being swept away by high surf while swimming at the Leala Sliding Rocks shoreline on Tutuila island, near the villages of Vailoatai and Taputimu. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-08-06 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila A 20 year old man was swept out to sea by large and powerful surf on the afternoon of August 06th while sitting along the shore line between Maliu Mai and the airport in the villages of Ili'ili and Tafuna, according to Talanei.com. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2024-04-02 | Rip CurrentManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila Local broadcast media reports that the Department of Search and Rescue began searching for a man who was swept out at sea due to rough seas while swimming along the coastline of Fogagogo village on the afternoon of April 2nd. Due to continuing rough sea conditions, the search operation was limited throughout the ... | 1 | 1 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest rip current and surf records in American Samoa
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-09-29 | TsunamiManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 32 | 148 | $111M | |
| 2003-05-17 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | $5.6M | |
| 2021-07-03 | High SurfSwains Island · forecast zone Manu'a | 0 | 0 | $1.1M | |
| 2001-12-03 | High SurfCountywide | 0 | 0 | $333K | |
| 2025-05-07 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila One storm episode: 2 records; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $34K | |
| 2020-06-15 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 2 | 0 | $23K | |
| 2005-02-15 | High SurfSwains Island · forecast zone Manu'a | 0 | 2 | $15K | |
| 2004-09-08 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 4 | $8K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are rip current and surf records becoming more frequent in American Samoa?
American Samoa's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | American Samoa | United States | American Samoa's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 16 | 1,021 | 1.6% |
| 2000s | 93 | 4,386 | 2.1% |
| 2010s | 34 | 5,810 | 0.6% |
| 2020-26 | 29 | 2,346 | 1.2% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent rip current and surf records in American Samoa
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-08-12 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-08-06 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-07-30 | TsunamiManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-07-29 | TsunamiManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-07-29 | TsunamiManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-07-29 | TsunamiManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-07-29 | TsunamiManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-05-07 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | $10K | |
| 2025-05-07 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 0 | 0 | $24K | |
| 2024-04-02 | Rip CurrentManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2021-10-28 | High SurfManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2021-09-11 | Rip CurrentManu'a District · forecast zone Tutuila | 1 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
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