In the last decades there have been frequent reports of oscillations of slender tension members under simultaneous action of rain and wind - characterized by large amplitudes and low frequencies. The members, e.g. cables of cable-stayed bridges, slightly inclined hangers of arch bridges or cables of guyed-masts, show a circular cross section and low damping. These rain-wind induced vibrations negatively affect the serviceability and the lifespan of the structures. The present article gives a short literature review, describes a mathematical approach for the simulation of rain-wind induced vibrations, sums up some examples to verify the calculated results and discusses measures to suppress the vibrations.