Hurricane Norbert + Coming P.M. High Tides (6.2 Ft Fri, 6.5 Ft Sat) May Amplify Coming "Surge" BUT Forecast Surf Heights Roughly Half Of Previous Hurricane BUT Now With Middle Breakwater Breaches
(Sept. 5, 2014, 7:35 a.m.) -- As of dawn Friday (Sept. 5), Hurricane Norbert is off the coast of Baja Mexico and heading north-northwest BUT is expected to bring a peripheral "surge" headed toward So. Cal south-facing beaches including Long Beach BUT with forecast surf heights roughly half the peak heights of recent Hurricane Marie BUT with three breaches in the middle breakwater (facing the Port) AND with a 6.2 foot high tide shortly after 7:00 p.m. Friday and 6.51 feet at 7:51 p.m. Saturday.
[Scroll down for further]
Time in UTC is 7 hours ahead of PDT (so subtract 7 hrs for LB time). Satellite image via NOAA
As previously reported by LBREPORT.com, the Long Beach breakwater's middle section (between Angels Gate and Queens Gate facing the Ports) was damaged by Hurricane Marie and now has three breaches and five near-breaches. It's unclear at this point if a separate eastward breakwater section sustained damage in the Hurricane Marie surge [coverage here.]
At 5:09 a.m. Friday, the Nat'l Weather Service issued the following high surf advisory:
Surf will build through today [Friday]...then peak Saturday and Sunday...before subsiding on Monday. Surf heights of 4 to 7 feet with local sets to 10 feet on south facing beaches.
Coastal flooding is possible across low lying areas along south facing beaches during the evening high tide on Saturday and Sunday.
Locations most impacted...In Los Angeles County...beaches from Long beach through the Palos Verdes Peninsula...
The hurricane surge (judging from recent Hurricane Marie experience) will likely be amplified in or around periods of high tides. The evening high tides on Friday, Saturday and Sunday night are expected to reach 6.2 feet Friday at roughly 7:02 p.m.; 6.51 feet on Saturday at 7:53 p.m.; and 6.62 feet on Sunday Sept. 7 at 8:42 p.m. Morning high tides Fri/Sat/Sun are expected less: 4.4 feet, 4.9 feet and 5.34 feet respectively.
The City of LB ssued this advisory on Thursday:
A storm surge event with higher than normal water levels is expected to impact the Peninsula and Naples areas of Long Beach this weekend. The storm surge is being caused by Hurricane Norbert in the eastern Pacific Ocean, and is expected to impact southeast Long Beach from Friday afternoon through Monday morning.
City crews are preparing for the storm surge with a coordinated, multi-department response by fortifying sand berms on both the beach and bay sides of the Peninsula, installing plugs in the Naples sea wall to prevent flooding, deploying additional staff and equipment around the clock and closely monitoring the situation.
Residents are advised to avoid swimming in any dangerous waters, stay off sand berms and stay away from City vehicles and machinery operating along the coastline.
As they did during the storm surge last week, volunteers from Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) and the Long Beach Search and Rescue Explorer Program will make contact with residents to provide information that will assist them in planning for this event. Residents should take appropriate steps to be prepared by securing personal property and vehicles in areas that are prone to flooding.
Bins of sand and empty bags will be available Friday morning at Ocean Boulevard and 72nd Place, and also at Ocean Boulevard and Claremont Avenue. Residents must bring their own shovels and are limited to filling 10 bags.
More information is available at www.longbeach.gov/disasterpreparedness and www.longbeach.gov/fire/cert.
