Gale Warning covers Georgia and northeast Florida coastal and offshore waters through Monday morning

NWS Jacksonville FL issued Gale Warnings at 12:58 AM EDT Sunday, October 18, 2026 for coastal and offshore waters along the Georgia and northeast Florida coast. The warned area spans six zones in two groups. The Altamaha Sound GA to Fernandina Beach FL corridor, covering both the coastal (0 to 20 NM) and offshore (20 to 60 NM) zones, is warned through 6:00 AM EDT Monday, October 19. The Fernandina Beach to Flagler Beach FL corridor, covering coastal and offshore zones for the Fernandina Beach-to-St. Augustine and St. Augustine-to-Flagler Beach segments, is warned through 1:00 AM EDT Wednesday, October 20.

The Altamaha Sound zone covers offshore access from Brunswick GA and St. Simons Island, a gateway to bottom habitat and trolling grounds in the Georgia Bight. Fernandina Beach at the Georgia-Florida line is a working fishing port on Amelia Island, with access to snapper and grouper bottom and offshore wahoo and mahi-mahi grounds. St. Augustine and Flagler Beach are northeast Florida ports with king mackerel and amberjack in range through October. All of that access is closed through at least Sunday night, and the Fernandina Beach through Flagler Beach zones remain closed through Tuesday night. The warnings apply to both the inshore coastal corridor and the deeper offshore lanes.

NDBC observations near the southern edge of the warned area as of early Sunday, October 18: NDBC station 41068 (Fort Pierce, FL, south of the warned corridor) recorded NNE winds of 23 knots gusting to 29 knots and water at 83 degrees Fahrenheit as of 2:08 AM EST. NDBC station 41114 (Fort Pierce, FL) reported seas of 7 feet and water at 84 degrees Fahrenheit as of 2:56 AM EST. NDBC station 41009 (Canaveral 20 NM East of Cape Canaveral, FL) recorded NNE winds of 23 knots gusting to 25 knots and seas of 8 feet as of 2:50 AM EST. Those readings come from the Melbourne NWS zone to the south. Dedicated NDBC coverage for the NWS Jacksonville zone is limited; the NWS Jacksonville zone forecast text, not adjacent-zone buoy observations, is the controlling product for departure decisions from Brunswick to Flagler Beach.

Gale Warning criteria apply for sustained winds of 34 to 47 knots. NWS guidance is that mariners should remain in port, alter course, or secure the vessel for gale conditions. Warning expiration times can be extended or shortened; the NWS Jacksonville zone products are at weather.gov/jax. The same coastal low driving the Georgia and northeast Florida warnings has produced gale-force conditions across the Carolinas and a Gale Warning for Chesapeake Bay; accounts for those areas are filed separately.

Update, October 19, 2026: NWS Jacksonville FL issued replacement Gale Warnings at 5:44 AM EDT Monday for the Fernandina Beach-to-St. Augustine FL and St. Augustine-to-Flagler Beach FL coastal and offshore zones — the same corridor warned in the original Sunday issuance. Both alerts have since been marked cleared by NWS as of Monday morning. The Altamaha Sound GA to Fernandina Beach FL offshore zone, warned through 6:00 AM EDT Monday in the original issuance, has also cleared. NDBC station 41068 (Fort Pierce, FL) recorded NNE winds of 16 knots gusting to 21 knots and water at 82 degrees Fahrenheit as of 9:08 AM EST Monday, October 19; NDBC station 41114 (Fort Pierce, FL) recorded seas of 9 feet as of 9:56 AM EST Monday. Conditions at the southern edge of the corridor are below gale force as of midday Monday. Check the current NWS Jacksonville zone forecast at weather.gov/jax before any departure from Brunswick to Flagler Beach.

On the water: Rules and conditions can change quickly. Confirm current regulations and official marine forecasts for your exact trip.