Some California beaches forced to close after ‘unusually high’ ocean water levels from Tropical Storm Rachel
The remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel, along with a separate storm system over the Western United States, continued to sweep across the West on Sunday, fueling flooding in several Southern California coastal communities.
Post-Tropical Storm Rachel made landfall in Baja California Saturday night, but as it moved in, its impact was already being felt along the West Coast.
A combination of large ocean swells stirred up by Rachel and prolonged swells due in part to an El Niño-enhanced Kelvin wave has produced major flooding along Southern California’s coast.
One of the hardest-hit areas has been Newport Beach in Orange County, which has been experiencing flooding since Friday.
Main drags like Balboa Boulevard in Newport Beach and numerous adjacent streets have been drenched in floodwaters.
The City of Newport Beach declared a local emergency on Saturday in response to the flooding caused by Tropical Storm Rachel.
“This declaration will help the City secure additional resources as crews continue working to protect homes, property and public safety,” the city said in a statement on Saturday, adding that elevated surf and “unusually high ocean water levels” are expected to continue through the weekend, with the highest tides anticipated Sunday.
All of the city beaches and piers in Newport Beach are closed until further notice, the city said.
“Stay away from these areas. Flooding and hazardous conditions pose serious safety risks,” the city advised residents in its statement.
Tropical Storm Rachel became post-tropical late Saturday night about 80 miles south-southeast of San Diego. However, its remnants and the separate system over the West will continue to fuel a flash flood threat across portions of the Southwest, as well as bring rough surf and gusty winds, on Sunday and into Monday.
The flash flood threat is expected to continue to unfold on Sunday, with the greatest risk to parts of Southern California, northwest Arizona, southern Nevada, and southwest Utah, where a level 3 of 4 threat for flash flooding is in place.
The National Weather Service issued a coastal flood warning for Orange County beaches that starts at 3 p.m. on Sunday and continues through Tuesday afternoon, warning of potentially significant flooding and beach erosion fueled in part by Tropical Storm Rachel’s remnants.
The greatest concern is high tide through Sunday morning and swells from the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel could create dangerous conditions with beach erosion and seawater once again flooding beach roads and paths.
Other cities along the Southern California coast — including Laguna Beach, Huntington Beach and San Clemente — were distributing sandbags to the public on Sunday in preparation for possible flooding.
In Seal Beach, about 30 miles south of Los Angeles, police reported that “due to elevated surf and coastal flooding concerns” beach parking lots were being closed on Sunday “as a precaution to protect life and property.”
On Saturday, the outer bands from Tropical Storm Rachel brought gusty winds and heavy rain to parts of Southern California and Arizona.
Wind gusts of over 60 mph were reported during thunderstorms that hit Menifee and Temecula, California. Heavy rain of up to 1 to 2 inches was reported with these storms as well, causing isolated instances of flash flooding and debris flow.
Gusty winds also produced a dust storm near Phoenix, Arizona, on Saturday with near-zero visibility reported.
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