Climateupdated 46m ago3 min read
Tropical Storm Rachel Floods Newport Beach Streets as High Surf Pounds Southern California
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Tidal surge from Tropical Storm Rachel floods streets on the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach. Parking lots and low-lying areas are inundated as powerful waves push seawater inland.
New York Post was read line by line by the Watchdog: 3.9. See the score →
Rachel’s warm-ocean boost
Tropical Storm Rachel is expected to make landfall either in northern Baja California or San Diego County as early as Saturday night, bringing damaging coastal flooding to Southern California. The National Hurricane Center warned that Rachel, spinning hundreds of miles off the coast of San Diego, could pick up some strength before arriving on the West Coast, an unusual occurrence for storms in the tropical eastern Pacific. UC Agriculture and Natural Resources climate scientist Daniel Swain said during a briefing Friday that it was “notable that this is an unusual event that’s being made possible by both coincidence of this early arriving low-pressure trough off the coast of California and the record warm — and I do mean record warm — ocean temperatures off the coast of California right now.”
The National Weather Service office in San Diego issued a rare tropical storm watch for most of San Diego County, including San Diego, Chula Vista, Carlsbad and Oceanside, meaning that tropical storm-force winds are possible over the next 48 hours. The weather service warned that south-facing shores face the biggest coastal flood risk because high tides and a higher-than-typical water level will stack with hazardous surf ranging from 3 to 6 feet in some areas.
Flooding hits Newport and Long Beach
Newport Beach saw high tide flood streets on the Balboa Peninsula on Friday morning, and City of Newport Beach Utilities Director Mark Vukojevic said, “This morning's tide came in 20 inches higher than the actual predicted tide value.” The city sent an emergency alert advising motorists to avoid the Balboa Peninsula due to street flooding and elevated tides, while crews worked to clear roadways and drain water by opening tide valves. High tide hit at about 9 a.m. and water surged onto the mainland to flood streets on a 2-mile stretch of the Balboa Peninsula, with submerged vehicles stopped in the middle of the street amid knee-high floodwaters.
Long Beach also took damage as damaging waves linked to former Hurricane Rachel crumbled large sections of a boardwalk on the Long Beach Peninsula, leaving one home on the verge of collapse. Hindustan Times said a roughly 30-foot section of the protective seawall and boardwalk was damaged in Long Beach, allowing seawater to spill onto nearby streets and reach homes.
What’s at stake next
Coastal flood advisory coverage is expected to remain in effect through Tuesday afternoon, warning of flooding in beach parking lots, boardwalks and roads with isolated road closures and minor coastal erosion.
The National Weather Service said there is a moderate, or 40% chance, of excessive rainfall that could lead to flash flooding in places like San Diego, El Cajon, Chula Vista, Escondido, Palm Springs and Twentynine Palms.
Storm surge on Monday is expected to reach about 7 feet, and Henry DiCarlo warned that Sunday night into Monday would bring even stronger waves coming in.
Rachel prompted the first tropical storm watch issued anywhere in Southern California since the remnant of former Hurricane Hilary moved into the state in 2023, and it forecast tropical storm-force winds in gusts within 48 hours.
Newport Councilmember Joe Stapleton wrote, “Mother Nature is unpredictable. Even with extensive preparation, some natural disasters exceed what science and experts can anticipate,” as the coastline faced continued flood risk through Tuesday at 2 p.m.