“The beach is not your friend this weekend,” said Rachel Kennedy, a meteorologist for National Weather Service Bay Area, describing a punishing surge of Pacific water.
Tall waves pummeled the California coast on Saturday, closing piers and beaches while threatening homes and infrastructure from San Diego to Malibu and beyond.
The worst impacts hit Northern California, where waves towering above 50 feet were recorded in San Mateo County just south of San Francisco. A high surf warning accompanied the heavy swell, and officials urged residents and visitors to stay away from the shoreline.
“You’re putting both yourself and any rescuers in danger if you go on the beach at all,” Kennedy told the Los Angeles Times, adding that onlookers need to maintain a safe distance.
Pier Closures and Evacuations
The city of Manhattan Beach announced Saturday morning that its popular pier was closed amid the rough surf. The rare closure affected the tourist attraction and the aquarium located at the end of the structure.
Farther south, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation warning for a stretch of coast near Capitola. That area took the brunt of the Pacific’s heavy wave activity.
In Los Angeles County, the National Weather Service reported expected surf heights of 6 to 9 feet building to 8 to 12 feet. A high surf advisory remained in effect through 3 p.m. Tuesday, alongside a coastal flood advisory that lasted until 4 p.m. Saturday.
Similar wave heights appeared in Ventura County. Meanwhile, San Luis Obispo County anticipated waves of 10 to 15 feet building to 18 to 25 feet.
Point Reyes Buoy Records Highest Wave Height Since 2015
Northern California absorbed the most severe wave action, with social media and local news broadcasts showing water surging onto city streets in Pacifica and Half Moon Bay. Witnesses reported people getting knocked down by powerful surges.
The highest wave height recorded Saturday morning reached 31.2 feet at a buoy off Point Reyes. Kennedy noted that figure marked the highest reading at that buoy since 2015.
Storm activity in the Pacific drove the high surf, specifically a system featuring hurricane-force winds in the ocean’s northeast near the Gulf of Alaska. That system generated a strong northwesterly swell.
“The initial swell is on the downtrend right now, but we are expecting to get a couple more northwesterly swells this week because the Pacific is so active right now,” Kennedy told the Los Angeles Times. “So we are expecting that there might be subsequent rounds of damaging waves this week.”
