Floodwater spilled into streets in Sunset Beach on Wednesday morning as another dangerously high tide struck the Southern California coast.
Floodwater spilled into streets in Sunset Beach on Wednesday morning as another dangerously high tide struck the Southern California coast, forcing the closure of a stretch of Pacific Coast Highway.
The tide peaked at 10:22 a.m., sending water into the area near Park Street and PCH. In some of the deepest spots, the water rose to about shin and knee level.
Although the flooding was not as severe as on Tuesday, water covered about half of the stretch of PCH between Warner Avenue and Anderson Street.
The water did not rise over the seawall, which is designed to stop the water and protect nearby streets. Instead, it came up through drains and seeped around the barrier’s edges.
The road was closed to drivers as crews pumped water from flooded areas and worked to prevent it from spreading. The city planned to keep the stretch of PCH closed until 2 p.m.
Earlier in the week, several people became stranded in their vehicles, and several water rescues were conducted.
Residents said the repeated flooding has left them with few options beyond waiting for the water to recede.
“Oh, it’s crazy. I’ve been here forever, and I’ve never seen flooding this bad. Occasionally, a little bit of flooding here, but not where it’s knee-deep,” resident Eric Maybry said.
“We had a foot and a half of water on both sides of this house, so I gave up. Nothing to do. Just get out of the way, pump it out when it’s done,” resident Curtis said. “I had this much water under the house. I got two pumps over there in the well right now, and they’re keeping up, but they’ll be overwhelmed as soon as this tide really gets moving.”
Even higher tides are expected around Thanksgiving and Christmas, possibly reaching about 8 inches higher than the tides seen this week.
