High Surf — Orange County Coastal, California

2023-12-28 · Orange County Coastal, California

Event narrative

Huntington Beach Lifeguards reported 10 to 12 foot surf with occasional very high sets of 15 to 18 feet.

Wider weather episode

A strong, long-period swell from the west-northwest arrived in Southern California on December 27-28th, and persisted through the 30th. This led to the development of very large breaking wave heights, especially at the beaches of Southern California. High tides each morning also led to instances of coastal flooding, mainly on lower-lying beach boardwalks and parking lots.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1152660. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.