CALIFORNIA – Rain, coastal flooding and waves as tall as 7m were expected along parts of the US West Coast on Dec 29, a day after giant waves pummelled the California shoreline and prompted evacuation warnings.
In Southern California, forecasters predicted waves of up to 7m and said the threat of significant coastal flooding would last into Dec 30 night. For beaches in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties, north-west of Los Angeles, high surf and coastal flood warnings were in effect through 10pm on Dec 30.
A coastal flood warning is a notch higher than an advisory, and indicates an imminent or likely threat to life and property.
The National Weather Service office in Los Angeles warned surfers and beachgoers that the risk of drowning is high, and the California state parks system said outdoor enthusiasts will need to be careful along the coast.
More than a dozen state parks and beaches in California were fully or partially closed because of bad weather.
Separately, a high surf warning was set to remain in effect through Dec 30 for more than four million people along the coasts of Oregon and California.
The weather service office in Medford, Oregon, expected infrastructure damage and beach erosion from breaking waves up to 7m high.
The large waves were part of a storm system approaching the West Coast early on Dec 29. The weather service said in a forecast that moderate rainfall, becoming heavy in some places, was likely for much of California later in the day.
About 30cm or more of snow was also possible in the Sierra Nevada by Dec 30 night.
Some coastal areas of California, Oregon and Washington states were also under a gale warning until late Dec 29 night, meaning that wind gusts of between 60kmh and 85kmh were imminent or occurring.
“Dangerously large” waves about 8m to 10m high, and possibly up to 12m high, were forecast overnight in some coastal spots in the San Francisco Bay Area and for some parts of Central California, where a few communities in Santa Cruz County received evacuation warnings a day earlier. NYTimes
