Overview
- Powerful offshore swells tied to Hurricane Marie removed large volumes of sand from beaches from Malibu to San Diego, leaving steep drop-offs and uncovering buried pipes, rocks and old pier timbers over the Labor Day weekend.
- Cities have moved quickly to inspect and secure affected areas with Dana Point and Laguna Beach declaring local emergencies and officials red-tagging nine oceanfront homes while issuing several yellow tags.
- Orange County lifeguards reported intense rescue and public-safety operations, issuing thousands of warnings and rescuing about 190 people from hazardous surf and rip currents.
- Municipal steps to protect property and infrastructure include emergency shoreline protection, sand-placement plans, temporary closures of parking lots and footpaths, debris removal and measures that bypass ordinary contracting rules to speed repairs.
- NOAA’s greater-than-90% chance of a very strong El Niño has raised concerns that winter storms could bring more intense waves and temporary higher sea levels, though USGS scientists say some beaches may recover sand naturally while others could be hit harder this season.