High Surf — San Diego County Coastal Areas, California

2023-12-29 · San Diego County Coastal Areas, California

Event narrative

Social media photos and videos of missing piling on Ocean Beach pier, as well as damaged railings due to high surf on Dec 29. Time damage occurred is unknown, likely on Dec 28 when surf of 10-15 feet was reported.

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 1152662. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.