Special Marine Warning Issued for Coastal North Carolina Waters Through Late Afternoon
This alert is no longer in effect.
NOAA issued it on April 6, 2026, 4 months ago. Warnings of this kind stay in effect for hours to a few days, so this page is a historical record of what was issued, not a current warning. For conditions where you are right now, check weather.gov (US), weather.gc.ca (Canada), the Met Office (UK), or the Bureau of Meteorology (Australia).
Areazine synthesizes this NWS weather alert directly from NOAA's official public data feed. See our methodology for full source attribution and refresh cadence.
The National Weather Service has issued a Special Marine Warning for the Neuse and Bay Rivers and surrounding coastal waters as a front brings 50-knot wind gusts and high waves.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Special Marine Warning
- Affected area
- Coastal North Carolina
- Issued
- April 6, 2026
- Issuing authority
- NWS Newport/Morehead City
Marine notices apply to named waters or shoreline zones. They may not describe conditions on land, even when the nearest place name is the same.
Record status: historical. It was issued 4 months ago; use the issuing agency's live warning service for current conditions in Coastal North Carolina.
Alert Details
The National Weather Service in Newport/Morehead City NC has issued a Special Marine Warning for several coastal regions in North Carolina. The alert was issued at 2:59 PM EDT following radar detection of a front moving northeast at 35 knots.
Affected Areas
The warning covers the following geographic regions:
- Neuse and Bay Rivers
- South of Ocracoke Inlet to Cape Lookout NC (out to 40 nm)
- South of Cape Lookout to Surf City NC (out to 40 nm)
Specific locations impacted include Salter Path, Ocracoke Inlet, Atlantic Beach, the Morehead City-Atlantic Beach Bridge, Bogue Sound, Drum Inlet, Beaufort Inlet, and Pine Knoll Shores, as well as various offshore locations including Ar342, Ar320, 14 Buoy, Ar345, Cape Lookout Bight, and the vicinity of Atlantic and Davis.
What You Should Do
Mariners are urged to move to safe harbor immediately. Hazardous weather, including gusty winds and high waves, is expected to impact the area. Boaters should remain in shelter until the conditions pass to avoid potential damage to small craft.
Expected Conditions
The primary hazards include wind gusts reaching nearly 50 knots. A significant wind shift is expected, moving from the southwest to the northwest behind the passing front. These conditions are likely to cause suddenly higher waves and potential damage to vessels.
Timeline
The Special Marine Warning is effective immediately as of 2:59 PM EDT and is scheduled to expire at 4:30 PM EDT on March 12, 2026.
Original source: NOAA Official Notice ↗
Related Weather Alerts
All Weather Alerts →Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this NWS weather alert.