Newport Beach and Long Beach hit with flooding during high tide

LONG BEACH, Calif. () — High tides moved into Southern California coastal communities Monday morning, flooding streets and businesses in areas that have already been battered over the past few months.

The high tides, which are expected to remain through Thursday, are expected to break records, raising the threat of flooding, beach erosion and property damage.

Newport Beach hit by more coastal flooding

Morning tides rolled in around 9 a.m., creeping onto streets in Newport Beach and flooding some businesses. AIR7 was over the area as the water moved in, forcing cars and people to trudge through the floodwaters.

The Balboa Fun Zone saw the brunt of the flooding, despite sandbags that were placed in the area ahead of the high tide. The water came in from the bay side of the peninsula, which signifies that sand berms erected on the ocean side of the peninsula kept even more water from coming in.

Officials said Monday morning’s high tide came in around 8.3 feet, more than a foot higher than was predicted. An 8.5 foot tide is expected to move in Tuesday.

High tide floods part of Long Beach

A similar situation unfolded in Long Beach, where homes have been red-tagged in recent weeks due to flooding and damage caused by high surf and high tide conditions.

At Bayshore Beach, the tide rolled over sand berms and across 54th Place toward waterfront homes and businesses like the restaurant Grill ‘Em All.

Meanwhile, water filled a garage that is below sea level, also flooding a fully restored 1968 Volkswagen Beetle that was parked inside.

“All of a sudden, that water just came in, and I went to open the car and the water started going in the car. So I just closed the door,” said Annie Koury.

On the other side of the peninsula, the already battered boardwalk seemed to be spared from any further damage.

More high tides expected

Morning tides ranging from 7.5 to 8 feet are expected along the Los Angeles County coastline, according to the National Weather Service.

“Monday through Wednesday could produce the highest on record,” according to the NWS.

Forecasters said the tides could challenge the record at San Pedro, where a high tide of 7.93 feet was recorded Jan. 10, 2005. Records at that location date to 1924.

A coastal flood warning remains in effect until 1 p.m. Thursday for the entire Orange County coastline. A coastal flood advisory covering the Los Angeles County coastline also remains in effect until 1 p.m. Thursday.

Areas of Long Beach, Malibu and Newport Beach have already seen substantial damage to homes from high surf in recent weeks.

Forecasters said the tides are running about 1 to 1.7 feet above astronomical predictions in Orange County and roughly 1 to 1.5 feet above predictions along the Los Angeles County coastline.

Minor coastal flooding is likely in vulnerable low-lying areas, including harbor walkways, beach parking lots, bike paths and normally sandy beaches, according to the weather service.

More significant flooding and damage are possible in locations with little or no remaining sandy beach or where previous high tides have already caused problems.

City New Service contributed to this report.