In the hours before Hurricane Ian struck Florida, the water in some bays and inlets began to retreat due to strong offshore winds. Offshore winds are winds blowing from land to water. These winds persisted for hours before Ian’s landfall, causing many tidal gauges, from Tampa, FL to Mobile, AL to report water levels below mean sea level (MSL). Mean sea level is a tidal datum and the arithmetic mean of hourly heights observed over the National Tidal Datum Epoch (a 19-year period from 1983-2001).
Data from tidal stations recorded these preliminary and verified water levels from September 26 - October 10, 2022.
Station:
Water Level (in feet)